Phoenix's Light
by 7saix-puppy7
Summary: He was all that she had. He was gone and now he was the only one that could help her get over it. A little Marco x Luffyko I came up with. Rated T just in case.
1. Emotions Are Useless

**Okay, yeah, I think I have a Luffyko disease since this is like my, third one I believe. Well I happen to like Luffyko and everything. Vampire Revan did a fanfic that was a Marco x Luffyko and it gave me the idea for one as well. I like the pairing though it seems to stick to me more with a female Luffy so I did it as one as well. I know I have others to work on and everything and that I just started one and I do have a request to do but I had this going through my head as well as When I Grow Up by Mayday Parade so this kinda appeared. I hope you guys like it and yes I will give you a better summary then what was on the link if you bothered reading it:**

He was all that she had. He was gone and now he was the only one that could help her get over it. Marco is determined to get Luffy back on her feet after the accident and the hyperactive girl might just let him. But what else will happen as he helps her recover. MarLu (Marco x Luffy) I hope that is right.

* * *

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 1 Emotions are Useless

She stood in front of the stone as the rain poured onto her hair. It was funny really, like in all of those movies where something sad or dramatic happens, it rains. Here it was the same. The rain poured down hard and people were dressed in black and the sky was grey toned. A bunch of red hibiscuses in her hand.

Etched into the gray stone that was now darker due to the rain was the name of who was buried underneath. Portgas D. Ace. The girl didn't move as the thunder clapped in the background. People were behind her, all already had taken their time to say good bye to the young man. It was only the girl who was left.

They stayed quiet, never bothering to move to cover her from the rain or to tell her it was time to leave. She had been standing there for almost ten minutes. Marco knew what was going through the girl's mind as she stared at her brother's grave stone emotionless. She had been there too. The bandages covering her body was proof enough as it was.

The blonde man glanced over at another group that was also present but not part of friends and family though the family itself was only the girl. The man who was semi in the middle was the cause for all of them to be there. He was the one at fault in this matter. Even so, Luffy didn't blame him. She didn't blame anyone for what had caused Ace's death. Just that he was gone.

Luffy continued to stare at the stone and images flashed through her head. The car had been driving normally. It was sunny and the roads were dry. They hadn't been speeding.

_*Flashback*_

_When the light turned green, Ace moved forward across the intersection. Luffy was asleep next to him and he was also tired. Both of them had come back from visiting their gramps and Ace had work the next morning. It was almost noon and they had been driving most of the night. _

_The black haired man hadn't heard the police siren as it came flying down the road. The car rammed into the side that Ace was on. The impact woke Luffy up, but only enough for the girl to feel pain and see what was happening as the car jerked and flipped. She felt Ace's hand hit her and glass shatter. After that she blacked out._

_When Luffy woke up again she was in a hospital. Marco was in her room and the others were outside. The place Ace worked was very well known as a port warehouse but also as a gang. Luffy was a semi member of it. Oyaji wasn't in the room but when Marco noticed the girl wake up, some of the other guys were called in._

_"The doctors said that you were lucky and that the worst injury you got was the cut under your eye and some bruises." Marco said as the girl attempted sitting up._

_"Ace…" the small girl said not exactly one hundred percent sure on her surroundings. "Where is Ace..?"_

_Everyone's faces dropped and so did the atmosphere of the room. The guys looked away from Luffy as she turned to them, looking for answers. Marco decided to be the one to give them. "I'm sorry Luffy; they got there too late…" the man tried his hardest to make it easy for the girl. "He's gone."_

_*End*_

Luffy dropped the bouquet before turning around and walking past the group that was behind her. She ignored them and kept her head low, not wanting to make eye contact with any of them. They watched her pass in silence. Ace was all Luffy had had. There was no other relative for her. She was alone.

* * *

Luffy opened the door to the apartment she and Ace shared. She walked pass the kitchen and pass the living room. She walked by the open door that led to her messy room and opened the door to her brother's decent one.

She looked in the room and Ace's scent filled her. Cigarettes and a bit of booze along with his own scent filled the room. Luffy walked into the room and let the door swing shut. She walked over his clothes and ignored the pain that filled her foot when she stepped on a broken CD.

The black haired girl climbed onto the black sheets that covered the man's bed and went to the corner of it where the bed touched the wall. Luffy brought her knees up to her chest and covered her face. She sat there and looked at her brother's room. A blood covered red bead necklace around her neck.

* * *

Marco hefted the box onto others and looked around the warehouse. Everyone was working like normal but the absence of Ace was obvious. It had been ten days since the funeral and the last time they had all seen Luffy. The girl would come with Ace when he went to work and after school. Eventually everyone liked her and Oyaji even accepted her to take his mark which she had done.

Luffy was always cheerful and even if she was prone to fall and trip over stuff, the girl was a lot of help and made everyone happier when she came. Now, they hadn't even heard from her. Marco put the box he was carrying down as his cell buzzed.

"Hello?" he asked almost hoping it was Luffy even though the caller ID wasn't hers.

_"Is this Marco?"_ the voice on the other end asked.

"Yes." Marco said questioning almost who this person was.

_"My name is Makino; I'm a secretary from the school Monkey D. Luffy attends. I know Luffy-san's brother just died but she hasn't been in school for almost ten days now. Is something wrong?"_ the young female seemed to be concerned for Luffy and the girl's well being.

"Not in school?" Marco questioned. Vista looked at him predicting that the conversation was about Luffy. The other guys seemed to pick up on this as well. "I haven't seen Luffy since the funeral so I'm not sure what is going on."

_"We were wondering if you could please make sure she is OK and get back to us." _the woman said it more as if she really cared about the girl rather than that the girl would be expelled if she didn't show up.

"Okay, thanks for telling me." Marco hung up his cell and looked at the rest of the guys. "Apparently Luffy hasn't been in school since the funeral."

"I wonder if she's okay, Ace was everything to her." Thatch said looking at Marco who was staring at the closed device. "Why don't you go and check on her?"

Marco looked up at him. The others seemed to agree with the man. "We'll tell Boss what's going on so you go and make sure that Luffy is okay. The girl's family to us." Thatch said and the man nodded before heading towards the doors.

* * *

Marco stared at the door to Luffy's apartment. He thought about knocking but ignored doing so and simply opened the unlocked door. He had done it so many times that it seemed normal but felt wrong at the same time. He walked in and shut the door, locking it out of habit.

The kitchen was empty and so was the living room. No sign of life even emitted from the place. Dust was beginning to collect on things and everything seemed to be painted in dull. Marco moved through the halls of the small apartment and came to Luffy's room. He looked in and saw it vacant.

The man had been over to the house before so he knew where everything was and nothing seemed new to him about Luffy's room. The red bed sheets were unmade and the pillow was lopsided on the bed. Clothes and toys littered the floor. Marco drew his eyes around to the closet wondering if maybe the girl was in there. She had a habit of hiding in it when Ace was angry at her or if she felt like jumping someone.

Marco was about to the walk in and open the closed white door when his eyes rested on Luffy's bra which was loosely hanging on her chair. The man quickly pulled out of the door frame and closed the door quietly. He took a deep breath and looked at the only other closed door that wasn't a bathroom or closet. He had never told anybody about the small feeling that he had for Luffy. Especially not Ace.

The man walked to the door and opened it. At first it was pretty dark because the lights were off and the curtains closed. Still, light would usually be able to shine through them but since it was night, none did. Marco was moved his eyes around the room in a similar way he had done with Luffy's until they rested on a small figure in one of the corners of the room. Marco looked at it closely before finally recognizing the dark, untamable hair.

"Luffy?" he whispered hoping not to scare the girl. There was no answer. Marco walked into the room all the way and closed the door behind him.

He walked up to the bed and sat down on the edge of it before looking at the girl again and attempting to get a response out of her. "Luffy?" the man asked again. He reached out and put his hand on her shoulder. The physical contact made the girl flinch and she looked at him shocked.

Marco stared at the girl's large brown eyes with a worried look. Luffy seemed scared and lost. Bags were under her eyes suggesting that she hadn't slept and it was a good guess that she hadn't eaten. Marco sat all the way on the bed and said the girl's name once more.

"Luffy, what's wrong? Why are you here all by yourself?" the man asked still keeping a hand on her shoulder. Luffy looked up at him and Marco noticed the tears that were beginning to form in the edges of her eyes.

"Ace, I can't get him out of my head…" the girl's voice was cracked and Marco noticed the tear stains dotting her face. The bandages that had been on her were ripped off opening some of the wounds she had received but they had healed naturally by then.

Marco sighed slowly before moving his hand to the girl's head. Luffy tightened the ball she was in. "I can't go to sleep because I'll see him." the girl continued. The girl looked up at Marco and tears were beginning to form even more and soon they over-spilled out of her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. "Marco, help…"

The words wretched at Marco and the man wrapped his arms around the scared girl. The girl almost disappeared as Marco brought her onto his lap and held her there. Luffy wrapped her arms around Marco and gripped his shirt as tightly as she could. Tears began to land on Marco's skin but the man ignored it and looked down at the girl.

He brought a hand under the girl's chin and lifted her head up to look at him. Luffy showed emotion and her face wretched at him. Marco leaned his head down and gently placed his lips on Luffy's. Luffy didn't seem to mind as Marco molded his lips to match hers. Warmth filled her cheeks but tears never stopped coming down her cheeks.

When Marco broke the kiss he brought Luffy's head to his shoulder immediately. "Don't worry." He said quietly but firmly. "I won't go. I'll stay with you." Luffy loosened her grip on his shirt but then retightened it as she nodded her head in his shoulder, agreeing to what he told her. Marco smiled and leaned against the wall of the room. Luffy, sitting in his lap and leaning against him, finally fell asleep.

* * *

Once again just something that popped in my head and also came from doodles that I was doing in art after I finished my project. Yeah, Art 1 so far is just gluing paper to other pieces and the annoying kid who sits next to me. Some high school freshman are annoying. That is not to offend anyone because I said some. Well, tell me if I should continue or not because I'm not too sure on this one and all but even if I get flamed, I probably will still do so. Don't be jerks and flame me just to see if I will please. I don't like those sort of emails.


	2. Live With Me

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 2 Live With Me

Marco woke up to his phone ringing sometime around noon the next day. Luffy was still fast asleep and didn't seem to want to move. A small snore was emitting from her throat. Marco smiled and moved carefully so that he didn't wake her up.

"Hello?" he asked quietly though he knew that he wasn't going to be able to wake up the girl for a while.

_"Hey Marco, it's Thatch."_ The voice one the other side said.

"Hey, what's up?" Marco asked glancing down at the sleeping girl in his arms. He ran a finger up and down the girl's spine making a little purr come from the girl.

_"Did you find Luffy? You never called." _The man asked and Marco mentally kicked himself for forgetting it.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I found her and she was a mess. She's asleep right now. I don't think she slept at all since the funeral." Marco said continuing to run his finger up and down the red fabric on the girl's back.

_"Damn, it hit her harder than we thought. Need any help?" _Thatch asked.

"Nah, I got it. I'm probably going to have to take the day off." Marco said as Luffy moved a little bit. Her face was facing Marco's neck now.

_"Okay but call us when she gets back on her feet a bit. Everyone's worried about her." _Thatch said and Marco could hear the sound of the other guys in the background. He agreed and hung up the phone and looked down at Luffy who was still clinging onto him.

"What am I going to do now?" he asked himself and looked at the girl. The cut under her eye had left a small scar that was the only thing tainting her face. That and tear stains.

"I probably shouldn't have done that…" Marco's thoughts went to the kiss he had given the girl. Why the hell had he even done that? There was no reason for him to kiss her. He had pretty much taken advantage of the situation to satisfy himself. Ah, he felt sick.

"Marco…"

The blonde haired man looked down at Luffy who was looking up at him half out of it. Marco stood still as Luffy sat up and looked at him. She was still partially asleep and not aware of her surroundings. Marco sat up a bit as well and moved Luffy next to him. The girl continued to watch him.

Marco stood up and stretched a bit. The position he had been sleeping in had been pretty uncomfortable. He looked at Luffy who was watching him as if to see if he was going to leave her. Marco brought his hands to the girl's cheeks and placed them one her face, a few locks of her black hair in his fingers. Luffy closed her eyes at the warmth that came to her cheeks.

"Get changed, I'll start making breakfast." He said with a small smile, slowly removing his hands from her face. Luffy nodded and watched as Marco left, closing the door behind him.

The feeling of being alone over came Luffy again at realization that he wasn't in the room anymore. The sound of Marco tripping over something came to her ears and Luffy realized that he wasn't gone. The girl stood up and did as she was told.

* * *

Marco went through the kitchen cupboard and looked at all the food that was in the house. The D siblings were known as big eaters so they usually had a lot of food in the house but all Marco could find was rice and eggs. Marco sighed and began to cook the rice and looked for some soy sauce to put on it with the eggs. Luffy hadn't eaten in days so this was probably a good idea to go light.

He turned around when he heard the light footsteps that entered the kitchen. When Marco looked at Luffy, he had to try not to laugh. The girl had put on a pair of Ace's black shorts which were probably kept on by one of his belts. She had also taken one of his sweater shirts that were buttoned up in the front. This was too big on her and went past her hands and slid a bit on her shoulders. The girl still wore Ace's necklace around her neck. The beads hadn't broken but were still covered in blood that stood out on the red beads.

Marco walked over to the girl who was just standing and staring at her bare feet that were pointed in. He bent down slightly and gently placed his hand on the girl's head. Luffy looked up at him through the black locks of her hair that were pressed in her face by the large hand. Her eyes were hazy and Marco knew that she hadn't recovered even a bit with him being with her.

"Food will be ready soon so why don't you sit down. I'll clean the necklace." Marco suggested and pulled out one of the chairs at the dining room table. Luffy sat at it and looked up at Marco who smiled softly as he helped her remove the beaded necklace.

Luffy watched Marco's back without showing any emotion as he cleaned the necklace in the sink. The smell of rice came to her nose and she glanced at the rice cooker which was steaming feeling of hunger came to her but she wouldn't say it. "Hungry?"

Luffy looked up at Marco who was smiling at her. He had noticed her watching the food. Luffy nodded slightly just to answer as Marco helped her put the necklace back on her. His hand lingered on her cheek slightly and Luffy was almost upset when he moved it away completely. "I tried but some of the blood wouldn't come out." Marco said going over to the rice and looking at it.

"S'okay." Luffy mumbled slightly grasping the necklace and running her hands over it. Marco looked at Luffy and brought food over for both of them. The bowl of rice had two fried eggs on it and had a bit of soy sauce on top. Luffy looked up at him and then at the food.

"Go ahead, it's better warm." Marco said grabbing his chopsticks and beginning to eat. Luffy nodded and slowly picked up at the wooden sticks and poked at the yoke.

* * *

Marco cleaned the dishes after they were done since the concept of a dishwasher was impossible for the apartment. Luffy stayed sitting at the table in her brother's over sized clothes and just watched the man. Marco knew that Luffy was watching him but did nothing but continue to go on as if everything was normal.

Marco moved over to the seat next to the girl and watched as Luffy rolled one of the beads in her hand. The usual grin and light atmosphere around the girl was gone. She was dull and inactive. To sum it up, Luffy was a doll. One of those glass porcelain dolls. And she had been pushed off of a high shelf onto a wooden floor. Marco knew that he could find all the pieces but even if he put them all back together; Luffy would never be the same. She would always have those cracks.

"Staying here by yourself isn't a good idea." Marco said and Luffy looked at him instead of the necklace in her hands. "My apartment has an extra room, you can move in there." Luffy looked at him with her emotionless mask. It was impossible for the man to understand what she was thinking.

"It's better if you're with people you know and aren't alone right now. This way you have someone to come to if you need someone." Marco scratched the back of his head as he tried to make this sound better.

"Mnh." Luffy said not exactly looking at anything. Marco understood it as a yes and put his hand on her head the same way that Ace had done to the girl so many times before. That was one thing he was glad for.

The man had read through some psychiatric and psychology books before. When someone loss someone important to them, things like physical contact that was something that the loss one did a lot would make them panic. With Luffy, it seemed to affect her very little. She just let him do as he pleased.

Marco stood up and went over to the phone that was on the wall near the fridge. "I'm going to make some calls to make sure nothing is messed up. If you want, you can go ahead and get some things that you want to bring with you. Later we'll move everything." He said before pressing some numbers that were on the phone. He heard the chair run against the floor and heard Luffy walk down the hall. The man sighed and began to make the calls that he knew were going to take a while to get done.

* * *

Luffy stared at the apartment in front of her. It was similar to the she and Ace had shared, just a little neater and had a bit more decoration and was more modernized. It was almost dojo like style and held a lot of traditional stuff. Luffy had a bag on her shoulder and stepped on the cold wood floor that filled the place.

"Go ahead and walk around if you like." Marco said before going to the living room. Luffy put her bag down by the door and lifted the hat that Ace always wore and put it on her head. The orange cowboy hat was somewhat big on the girl but she didn't care.

Luffy had never been to Marco's house before so everything was new to her. She wondered the halls absently but always made sure that Marco was in ear shot. She could hear him talking on the phone and the sound of his voice told her that she wasn't alone. The girl trailed her hand on the white walls and closed her eyes, taking in the scent of the place.

It was so similar to Ace's scent, cigarettes and booze, the smell of the warehouse and Marco's own scent. She felt more comfortable smelling this as she did smelling her brother's scent. She went back to the door where she left her bag and grabbed the pillow she had taken from Ace's room.

* * *

Marco looked up at Luffy as the girl walked into the room with a pillow in her hand. He was sitting on the couch and just got off the phone with Thatch. He had called the man to tell him that Luffy was living with him. Luffy placed the black pillow on his leg and lied down next to him with her head on the pillow.

Marco had other things to do but Luffy was asleep almost instantly and he sighed thinking that they could wait. Luffy was the most important thing right now. She was messed up on the inside and needed help. The girl never really relied on anybody at all. Sure she would ask for help and was somewhat dependent, but the girl was mostly independent. She never really needed anybody to take care of her.

Marco put his hand on her hair and began to stroke the black stuff. Luffy curled up and the man picked up a blanket that was on the ground and covered her as a shiver ran down her spine. He smiled slightly as the girl reflexively wrapped the blanket around her more. He put his head back and looked at the plastered ceiling.

Luffy was never really clingy to anybody but Ace and that was only when she was scared of something which wasn't often. Right now the girl was scared and Marco was the one she decided to cling to. Marco continued to unconsciously run a hand through Luffy's hair. The girl was in a dead sleep and Marco couldn't blame her. If she hadn't slept during that whole time then her body was probably at its limit.

Marco turned his attention to his door which flung open revealing Thatch. The man noticed Marco who was sitting at the couch and walked over. The door had swung shut. "So, she going to be staying her with you forever?" Thatch asked sitting down on Luffy's other side. Marco glanced at him tiredly and shrugged.

"Till she wants to move out." he said simply closing his eyes hoping to stop the stinging that was vibrating through them. Thatch looked at him for a minute before realizing that the man had fallen asleep. A small chuckle formed in his throat and he placed his hand on Luffy's back. The man could feel the slight rise of the girl as she breathed in.

"Might as well leave them alone." The man said standing up. He glanced at Marco one last time before lazily dropping a blanket on him and moving to the door. The man turned off the lights in the house and closed the door.

* * *

Once again ending with the two of them being asleep. I'm liking this one even though it is really serious and not as funny as the actual series but I still like it. Luffy is really OOC but you probably picked up why so it should be all good. I hope you like this chapter and I will update others later. I am off to watch the Little Mermaid and you will learn why later.


	3. School Might Help, Might

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 3 School Might Help, Might

Marco looked at the girl who was sitting at the table across from him. The girl had finally gotten some of her appetite back even though it wasn't as much as it used to be. Luffy still didn't talk that much and mostly looked at the ground and was always close to him. She never was out of ear shot of the man but that made him feel better as well. Because that meant she was in his hearing range as well.

Luffy had been with him for two days and he had convinced her that going to school might help. She could see her friends and talk to them and they might help her feel better. Luffy shook her head no at first and gripped onto Marco's shirt but Marco had finally been able to get through to her.

Luffy didn't like skirts. That was a fact that he had learned from when she first started off at East Blue High. They didn't allow the girls to wear shorts which meant she had to wear the skirt. Luffy had looked at it with so much disgust every time she wore one that it was almost funny. Now she ignored it and just went with it as another article of clothing. It was almost scary how unresponsive Luffy was about it.

"I have to go to work today but I'll be home around four." Marco said and Luffy nodded. He wasn't exactly sure if the girl understood that she would have to be without him for a few hours or not.

* * *

Marco dropped Luffy off at the main gate of her school and promised to be home that night. He had no reason to spend the night at the warehouse like he had done before. The girl knew about that because Ace would often stay over as well and she had done so a few times to.

Luffy walked along the group of people around her. It was rather noisy with everyone talking and laughing. The sound of people who were talking and breathing and the fact that they were alive was satisfying to Luffy. The girl liked how it was loud and not quiet.

She entered the building and went to the main office. Marco had told her that she needed to drop off a sheet of paper and that they would help her from there. The receptionist looked at Luffy with a sympathetic smile. Luffy ignored it and kept her mask on. The whole school had learned about the accident that she and her brother were in.

"We'll get you started again." The woman said with a smile before gesturing for another student to help show Luffy to her classroom. The blue haired girl nodded and gestured for Luffy to follow her with a friendly smile.

"My name is Vivi." The girl said. Luffy watched the girl's back but said nothing. Vivi continued to talk. "We're in the same homeroom class, so I'm supposed to show you around."

"Mnh." Luffy said looking at other students. They were crowded around the lockers and such and were talking but as she passed, they looked up at her and whispered. Even the silent talking felt nice.

"We're doing a project right now that involves a group. We need four people in each group so I'm pretty sure you can join ours." Vivi continued as she opened the door to their class. The bell had rung as they had been walking and they had had to speed up.

"Sorry that we're late Nico-sensei." The girl said bowing to the black haired teacher who smiled at her sweetly. The woman nodded and gestured for Vivi to sit down while Luffy was to come to the front of the classroom.

Luffy stood in front of the class with her hands at her side, barely brushing against her white long-sleeved collared shirt. The class stayed quiet as Luffy looked at them without showing any expression. Nico Robin seemed to pick up on the girl's lack of wanting to speak and offered her to sit in the back next to the window.

The girl slowly walked pass the kids that were trying their hardest not to stare at the her. Luffy sat in the vacant chair and looked out the window. She was staring at the clouds that were thick and fluffy. The image of Ace's face came into her sight and she quickly looked at her desk.

Vivi and an orange haired girl walked up to Luffy's desk along with another girl with green hair. Vivi and the green haired girl smiled at Luffy while the other just looked at the girl as if she would snap at any second.

"Luffy-san, these are my friends Nami and Keimi." The girl said happily as they sat around the silent girl. "Like I said earlier, we're working on a project and we need another person, will you help us?"

"Vivi, I don't know about this…" the orange haired girl called Nami began but Keimi cut in.

"Luffy-chin, that's a really pretty necklace." The girl said looking at the shining red beads that were played through the girl's fingers. "Is it special?"

Luffy nodded slightly and looked down at the beads. Marco had done his best cleaning it and only a spot here and there remained of the blood and dirt that had covered it before. Keimi leaned in closer to get a better look at it.

"Well, I guess we have no choice." Nami said with a sigh since Keimi already liked the girl even if she was acting strange.

"We're doing a dance routine for the culture festival. Since this is our homeroom and everything we get to do things in different groups because Nico-sensei said it was okay." Vivi said excitedly. "We just have to agree on a song."

"I still say that Take It Off will be fine." Nami said obviously liking that song.

"I like Dam Dadi Do!" Keimi said cheerfully.

"I want Single Ladies. What about you Luffy-san?" Vivi asked wanting the girl's opinion. Luffy looked up at them and then back at her necklace. She didn't know what to say and she didn't want to say anything.

"Vivi, she isn't going to answer, she's too hung over her brother's death to bother listening to anybody else." Nami said simply though a little annoyed at the same time.

"Nami-san that's mean." Vivi said glancing over at Luffy who seemed to have gotten quieter and maybe a bit more distant.

"It's the truth. She needs to get over the fact that he's dead and move on." Nami said in an angry tone. She looked at Luffy who seemed to have gotten smaller.

"I think Luffy-chin is trying to." Keimi said sweetly looking at them with a smile. Luffy glanced up at the girl, a little closer now. "Maybe she's just too shy to admit it."

"Keimi, you do remember how Luffy was before this incident, right?" Nami asked not believing the girl actually thought that Luffy was shy. Before this, Luffy would be ditching class, sleeping through it, running around the halls and once even got caught spraying graffiti on the school buildings. Luffy wasn't shy, just mentally broken. Why the hell was she even at school?

"Nami-san, maybe you should be nicer to Luffy-san. She is right here." Vivi said trying not to make this a big scene. If one of them got violent, this could get ugly, and fast.

"She doesn't hear us." Nami said waving her hand in front of Luffy's face. The girl didn't react or flinch whatsoever. The girl just sat there and continued to play with the beads around her neck. Nico-sensei noticed the lack of collaboration at the group and went over to investigate.

"Is something wrong?" she asked the four girls but rested her blue eyes on Luffy who hadn't looked up at her.

"We still just can't figure out a song yet." Vivi said hoping that the woman hadn't heard the conversation they had just had.

"Okay, Nami-san, I suggest being a little kinder to Luffy-san. I know that you lost someone dear to you but everybody has a different situation when these sort of things happen." The woman said walking to another group who had needed help. Nami looked at the desk in front of her with a sigh.

"Fine, sorry Luffy." The girl said looking out the window and resting her chin in her hand. "But it would be nice if you could talk a bit."

* * *

Luffy sat at the table in the living room and stared at the book in front of her. She had never liked doing homework before but now it was just not wanting to do it that prevented her from actually writing in the answers. The house had been silent when she had made it up to it and that silence scared her.

She remembered that Marco said that he wouldn't be home till four and that meant she had to handle an hour without noise. That had been terrifying at first but she found a note that Marco left for her. It had told her that she could turn on the MTV that was on the TV and listen to music if she felt like it.

There wasn't exactly anything the girl wanted to listen to exactly but there was five hours of different music videos straight and the different types of music playing through the living room made her feel better. The lights were all out except the one in the living room.

Luffy eventually got tired of looking at the worksheet full of questions that she would have to return to the teacher the next day and laid her head down on the table. Luffy wrapped her arms in front of her and used them as a pillow before slowly falling asleep.

* * *

Marco entered the dark apartment and instantly turned on the lights. At first he thought that Luffy hadn't been able to make it to the house and was out lost somewhere but the light and music from the living room caught his attention and he found her asleep at the table with sheets of homework in front of her. Another thing that seemed to have changed about the girl.

Before Ace would have had to remind the girl and pester the hell out of her before she would even consider doing the stuff before putting it in the shredder. He walked over to her and gently shook her shoulder. Luffy woke up and looked at Marco who smiled at her. The girl nodded at him and the man went to the kitchen to prepare dinner for the two of them.

Luffy turned off the TV and crawled onto the couch and laid down on it. The sounds of Marco working in the kitchen were nicer to her then the songs that were playing on the TV. Those weren't actual people in the room, but Marco was. The girl closed her eyes and once again fell asleep.

Marco came in later when the food was done and sighed with a smile as he woke the girl up once again to tell her it was dinner time. The girl slowly stood up and followed close behind him.

They ate in silence but they did eat. Marco glanced up at the girl who seemed to be concentrating on the food as if it would disappear at any second. That was one trait of Luffy's that Marco was glad he recognized. He decided to try and talk to the girl about simple matters.

"What happened at school?" he asked simply biting into his own food. Unlike before, he didn't have to eat fast from threat of having his food stolen. Luffy didn't seem to be in the mood for that.

"Culture Festival." Luffy said quietly looking up at him with her hazed eyes.

"What are you doing?" he asked knowing that Luffy talking a bit was good. Maybe her friends had been able to get to her a bit.

"They want to do a dance." Luffy said with so little emotion that Marco almost thought that the girl wanted to shoot herself for having do to this sort of thing.

"What song?" he asked with a small smile. The actual day for the festival was over a week away and Luffy dancing in the state she was in now was impossible to picture.

Luffy shook her head. By the end of the day, they still hadn't decided on one. Marco bit into his chopsticks and looked at the girl. He wasn't all that good at this sort of thing. Ace was closer to Luffy's age then he was and the man would always act like a girl at times just to make the teen laugh. It was kinda scary though.

"How many people?" he asked, he could at least help the girl a bit. He remembered some of the songs that were pretty popular among teenagers now a days.

"Four." Luffy muttered finishing her food.

"That includes you?" Luffy nodded and Marco looked at the wall above the kitchen door. Now that he thought of it, what were Luffy's friends like? She had never brought them over and he defiantly never saw her go out by herself. Luffy had always hung around them and Ace.

"Do they have any choices?" Marco asked. He might have been getting too deep in this, but Luffy was talking and interacting though he doubted she would do it with many people.

"Take It Off, Dam Dadi Do and Single Ladies." Luffy said remembering the songs that she had heard earlier that day. Marco sighed at the choices. He had never heard of the second and the first one he never listened to before but with the title, he figured it was kinda suggestive. Single Ladies, well that kinda spoke for itself.

"What song do you want?" Marco asked. Maybe the girl had given them her opinion but his slight hopes were ruined when the girl shrugged saying she didn't care. Marco put the dishes in the dishwasher and Luffy followed him out to the living room like she had done the days before.

Luffy sat at the table and stared at the homework that she still had to finish. Marco looked at the pile and whistled. They really pounded the girl hard with that stuff. She had missed almost ten days of school so it was pretty obvious but still. Marco looked at the stuff and the thoughts of what had to be done to solve them filled his mind.

Marco sighed at the papers and noticed Luffy working on them. He glanced over her shoulder and noticed all the mistakes she was making. Luffy, even if she wasn't okay in the head, still wasn't the smartest person in the world. The girl seemed to be just randomly putting down numbers and hoping that they fit.

Marco smiled with a small sigh and put the paper down before turning on the TV and looked at the channel that was playing. Luffy glanced up at him and put her pencil down. Marco didn't object to Luffy quitting her homework and lying against him. She was probably going to be doing it for a while.

Marco rested his hand on her head and ran his fingers through her hair as he flipped through the channels for something descent to watch. In the end it landed on MTV again and the man put the remote down and allowed the music to play. Luffy wasn't asleep but wasn't exactly paying attention to anything.

The girl kept her eyes on the screen wanting to concentrate on it and nothing more. The song playing seemed to catch the girl's interest and she reached over and pushed the replay button on the remote to listen to the song again. Marco looked down at her and smiled as she concentrated on the song again.

"Maybe you should tell them tomorrow that this is the song you like." Marco suggested. Luffy looked up at him before going back to watching the TV and concentrating on the lyrics that were playing on the screen.

* * *

Okay, just for a small warning, I plan on updating this one often like a chapter or two a day even with school because this one won't leave my mind. I might have to put a few of my other stories on hold but my top read will get updates like usual. I might put another one up shortly. I hope you like this chapter and yes there will be a song, if you have any ideas, please tell me. I have one but I also want to know what you guys think it might be.


	4. Talking Isn't That Bad

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 4 Talking Isn't That Bad

"Evacuate The Dance Floor."

The three girls looked at Luffy who went back to looking at her necklace after saying what she had planned on saying. They were discussing the song choice again and Keimi had asked for Luffy's opinion. The girl had answered them surprising all three of them.

"Evacuate The Dance Floor?" Vivi questioned. She had heard of the song, but never actually listened to it.

"I've heard it before, but I never really thought about dancing to it because it was only bits and pieces of it." Nami said. She glanced down at Luffy who was staying quiet again. It was obvious to tell that she was still recovering from what happened to her brother.

"I like the song, why don't we watch some dance videos and base our dance off of them." Keimi suggested. The others agreed. Luffy looked down still, not exactly sure what to do now. Before she would have joined right in and be laughing and such, but it seemed pointless now.

"But whose house should we got to?" Nami asked. "I can't do it at mine since my sister's boyfriend is over."

"Papa is having a meeting today." Vivi said sadly.

"Pappag also has guests over." Keimi said a little disheartened. "What about you Luffy-chin?" the three girls looked at Luffy who nodded her head.

"We can come over?" Nami asked happily. Maybe the girl wasn't all that bad. Sure she was kinda depressed and maybe a little mentally unstable at the moment, but she wasn't a jerk. "How about today?"

Luffy nodded again and the girls cheered. Luffy looked out the window. Marco wouldn't mind, he would probably be happy that she had people coming over. Nico-sensei noticed the now happy group and walked over to them.

"Have you figured out what you're going to do?" she asked the smiling girls who nodded. Her glance still fell on Luffy who was looking at her now. A small amount of light was evident in her eyes.

"Yup." Vivi said happily, "And Luffy-san said that we can come over to her house today to work on it."

"Ara, is that going to be okay?" the woman asked Luffy. The black haired girl nodded. "Okay, but make sure to go home before it gets dark."

"HAI!" the girls said in unison before turning back to the Luffy's desk which they were all crowded around.

"I say we have outfits." Nami said grabbing paper and beginning to sketch on it. "We need something cute and sexy."

"Nami-san, nothing too revealing." Vivi said with a small sigh at the girl's wanting of showing off her body. "Maybe we should each have a unique outfit."

"I like that." Keimi said with a smile before glancing at Luffy who was staring at the picture Nami had drawn. It was a picture of her. In a skirt.

"Do you not like skirts Luffy-san?" Vivi asked when she caught where the girl was looking. Luffy shook her head no.

* * *

Luffy walked along the street with the talking girls behind her. Well, it looked more as if she was just at the front of them and they were having a conversation and she was just listening. The cars flew pass them with the occasional honking of horns at the girl which either got a finger or was ignored.

Luffy walked up to the apartment she and Marco shared. The girls looked at it surprised. The apartment was one of those fancy, expensive skyscraper type deals. Luffy walked in calmly and began to climb stairs with the girls right behind her.

The four of them entered the apartment and looked around it. Luffy closed the door and didn't bother locking it and walked into the living room after taking her shoes off. The others did the same and stared at the flat screen TV. Vivi seemed to be the only one not completely stunned by where Luffy lived.

"How the hell do you live in such a posh place?" Nami asked as Luffy went over to the TV and turned it on. The girl shrugged and turned to MTV, hoping that song would play.

Time passed and the girls jumped when they heard the door open. They were scared at first but Luffy stood up and walked out calmly. The three of them went over to the hallway and peaked out at the door where a rather good looking man was smiling at Luffy. The girl grabbed onto his shirt and pulled him away from the door and began to drag him in their direction. He caught sight of the three girls and looked at them with a smile.

"You must be Luffy's friends." He said bringing them tea as they sat in the living room. Marco sat down next to Luffy who moved closer to him.

"Well, we're working on a project together and things sort of happened." Vivi said politely.

"Hm, so you didn't know Luffy before she came back?" Marco questioned taking a bite out of the rice cracker he had brought.

"Luffy was always by herself at school." Nami said surprised that man didn't know. Luffy was living with him after all. "After school she would rush out and go someplace and even in school all she was was a trouble maker.

Marco looked at Luffy who nodded her head saying that it was all true. Marco began to feel bad about what he had told her to do the day before. He had figured that Luffy had friends since she was always so cheerful and friendly and such but she hadn't. Even so, these girls got Luffy to talk a bit more and the girl brought them here.

"Well, I guess that makes you her friends now and all." Marco said with a smile. Nami and Vivi blushed at the smile he gave them and Keimi just stared. "Do you want to stay for dinner?"

"My sister won't mind." Nami said instantly.

"Papa's meeting is still going on." Vivi followed

"Pappag told me not to come back until he called." Keimi said with a smile.

"Is it okay, Luffy?" Marco asked looking at the girl who nodded. He smiled and got up to begin cooking. After he was gone, the three of them huddled around Luffy.

"Okay, who is he?" Nami asked. Luffy looked at the girls who were hoping for answers.

"Marco." Luffy said. Hadn't he said his own name?

"No, what connections do you have with him." Nami said hoping he didn't come in and hear them.

"Ace's friend and mine." Luffy said quietly.

* * *

Marco stood at the door and smiled. Luffy was talking to them and she seemed less scared. Having girls her own age around seemed to be making her better. But would it be able to cure her completely? No, that was impossible. He already knew that Luffy would never be able to fully recover from this situation no matter how hard he tried.

"So, what do you think of him?" Vivi asked. Marco perked his ears as Luffy remained silent. Since they didn't press it was probably a safe guess to believe that the girl was thinking.

"Marco…" the man flinched when he heard his name being called and tried to regain himself before turning to them.

"Dinner's ready so come on in." he said with a smile and the girls did.

* * *

"Okay, you couldn't tell us yesterday because Marco was there, but tell us now. What do you think about him?" Nami pressed the next day as they were getting ready for the festival.

"Mnh." Luffy said looking around. She liked how lively the school was but not how all the people were in ear shot.

Nami said nothing but instantly took out her cell. They had exchanged numbers yesterday and the girl instantly sent the text message to Luffy. Luffy looked at it and then at the girl before typing in her answer. Nami received it and the three girls read it before instantly looking at Luffy.

"HE KISSED YOU!" Nami yelled. Luckily the school was so loud that no one heard them. Luffy nodded her head while Vivi and Keimi removed their hands from Nami's mouth.

"Luffy-san, Marco-san must like you then." Vivi said with a small smile. The man was good looking but he had chosen Luffy.

"Wait, this isn't positive." Nami said. She wanted to make sure that this was true. "It could have just been a spur of the moment."

"How can Luffy-chin make sure that it was the real thing?" Keimi asked. Luffy looked at them confused. Nami caught the look.

"Luffy, do you like Marco?" the girl asked trying to get through to the girl. Luffy nodded her head slowly not sure if that was the answer Nami wanted. "I mean like, love him, not as a friend, but as a boyfriend?"

A small blush came across Luffy's face at the realization of what Nami was getting at. Nami smiled and became determined again. "We have to stay after. He knows that right?" Nami asked. Luffy nodded not exactly sure what to say. She had switched so fast. "We're going to make sure that this is true. Here's what you do…"

* * *

Luffy walked into the door. She was tired from having to work after school on the project that they were doing. They had started practicing their dance and Nami was strict on what had to be done. Marco was already back and was in the living room reading the newspaper when the girl came in and looked at him. She was still wearing her school uniform.

"Hey, how was it?" Marco asked smiling at the girl. Luffy nodded before taking in a deep breath. Butterflies began to fill her stomach but she was determined to do this.

"Marco…" she began. For the first time in a while her voice wasn't quiet. Marco looked at Luffy knowing that the girl had something to say. Her voice sounded stronger than it had been for the last few days. "Will you kiss me again?"

* * *

* * *

Marco looked at the girl who was staring at him with a blush deepening her face. She had done what Nami had told her to do and now everything was up to Marco and how he would react to the question. Marco stared at the girl who kept her eyes on him. For the first time since Ace died, light actually shined in them.

"Wha-where did that come from?" Marco asked looking away. It had to have been from those girls. Specifically the orange haired one.

"Bu-but you-" Luffy stuttered, she wasn't sure what to say and speaking about this made her nervous.

"Luffy, that was just something I did at that time." Marco said not looking at the girl. He would not be satisfying his own selfishness. Not at a time like this. Luffy became quiet and looked down at the ground. Marco glanced up at her after noticing her silence.

"Luffy, I don't mean to hurt your feelings; it's just that, ah this is hard…" Marco stood up and moved in front of the girl but was still unclear on what to say. How the hell was he supposed to tell a girl who just lost her brother no. Yeah, he liked her but…

Luffy looked up at Marco and Marco saw emotion on Luffy's face. For the first time Luffy actually had light in her cheeks. Marco slowly moved his hand up to Luffy's cheek. Once it was placed on it, Luffy brought her hand up to cover it and smiled at Marco. A real, Luffy smile.

Marco cupped Luffy's face and bent down and let his lips hover over hers. He was reluctant to actually do it, but Luffy stood on her toes a bit which finally put their lips into contact. Marco wanted to pull back at first.

The feeling of betrayal and selfishness filled him but he stopped himself from pulling away when Luffy wrapped her arms around his neck. Marco moved his hands from Luffy's face to her back and head. Their lips never parted as Marco sat down and put Luffy in his lap. The kiss ended when the door opened.

"Go ahead and continue." Thatch said closing the door and leaving the two of them alone. Marco instantly shot up and opened the door.

Thatch fell down at the sudden loss of his support. He looked up at Marco who quickly grabbed his collar and pulled him in, locking the door in the process. Luffy peaked over the edge of the couch and looked at the two of them. Marco seemed clearly pissed while Thatch was trying his hardest not to make a smart remark. He noticed Luffy watching them and smiled at the girl with a wave. Luffy slightly waved back.

"Okay, Thatch, you have one of two choices, tell no one or I burn your hair till there's nothing left." Marco said in a threatening voice. Thatch shrunk a bit at it and the doorbell rang.

Luffy got up while Marco continued to threaten Thatch and opened it up to reveal Vista and Izou. The two of them looked at the girl and smiled. They hadn't seen her in so long so it was nice to see Luffy. Even though the girl seemed to still lack her usual smile.

"VISTA IZOU, MARCO KISSED LUFFY!" Thatch said to the two of them in the second he got out of Marco's clutches.

"Your hair is gone." Marco said grabbing him and looking at the other two that were staring at him in shock and then at Luffy.

"I-is it true?" Izou asked and Luffy nodded her head. The two of them looked at Marco and quickly hid Luffy from his sight.

"Oi," Marco said looking at the two of the, and then at Luffy who was confused if not a little scared at what was going on.

* * *

Okay, one, the big empty spot was intentional. I was thinking of ending the chapter there and went against it. I know I said in the side note that I would listen to your guys' opinion on the song but for some reason the next chapter never showed up in the list so I'm adding this one up to see if it will work. This is supposed to be more of a serious fic so that humor at the end is probably the most you'll ever see in it and I hope that Luffy isn't recovering to fast.


	5. What it Means to Feel

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 5 What it Means to Feel

Luffy was helping Keimi with the sign that they had to make. Since she was the one who knew how to use a spray paint can, she had to make it. Luffy didn't complain and Keimi did most of the talking. The girl was happily filling in the letters that Nami had drawn out on the white plaster board. Luffy may have known how to use a spray can, but actually drawing with it showed her poor art skills.

Vivi and Nami were working on outfit designs at the table while the two of them did this. They were in the auditorium and other people were beginning to decorate it. There were ladders with people on them everywhere. Walking around the place was pretty dangerous but the four girls managed.

Someone walked in carrying a rather heavy looking rug and stumbled around. Nami sighed predicting a disaster and that is what happened. The teen bumped into a ladder that began to sway. Nobody was on it but a pair of scissors that were fell off.

Keimi screamed as the blade cut Luffy's upper arm. The girl hadn't noticed it and looked at her arm as the warm blood substance streamed down her arm. Luffy continued to stare at it as the person who had accidentally bumped the ladder began to apologize to her like crazy.

"Watch where you're going." Nami said chewing the boy out while Vivi and Keimi began to drag Luffy to the nurse's office. "If you need help, ask someone."

* * *

"It's pretty deep, but there isn't any need for stitches." The doctor said smiling at the girl who never dragged her eyes away from the bandage on her arm. "It won't leave a scar."

"Didn't hurt…" Luffy muttered too low for the doctor to hear.

"She said that the scissors hitting her didn't hurt." Nami said. The three girls had gotten used to Luffy's quiet voice.

"Probably because it happened so suddenly that the pain never registered. You were probably also thinking about the festival." The doctor said with a smile assuring the girl that it was nothing. Luffy nodded and the others thanked the man for his help. Luffy continued to stare at the wound.

* * *

Marco opened the front door to his apartment like normal. They had gotten a new shipment right before he was about to leave and he had had no choice but to help. He causally walked in like usual and went to the living room where Luffy was probably at.

The only thing that made him question that was that music wasn't playing in the house like usual. He noticed the light on in the kitchen and went over the door. He peaked in and saw Luffy standing at the counter with one of the knives in her hand.

Was she trying to cook dinner? No, that probably wasn't it. Marco noticed a cut on the girl's wrist. Had she been trying to do something and accidentally cut herself? Marco's answers were answered as the girl brought the blade next to her skin and slid it across the already bleeding wound making more beads of blood form.

Marco rushed in and swiped the knife out the girl's hand before she could cut her skin a third time. He forced the girl to turn around and slapped her in the face. It probably wasn't the best idea, but Marco had no choice.

Luffy looked up at him and brought her hand to her face. It had hurt; the slap had hurt, but the blade…

"What the hell do you think you were doing!" Marco asked the girl seriously. The girl didn't look at him. She stayed silent and Marco left before coming back with something to treat the bleeding wounds.

"Didn't hurt…" Luffy said. Marco had told her to sit in the chair and he knelt in front of her and was bandaging the cuts.

"What didn't?" Marco asked after he was done.

"The cuts…" Luffy said looking from her bandage wrist to her arm. Marco followed her and ran a hand over the bandage. "The slap hurt, but not the cuts…"

Marco stared at the girl in shock. It wasn't pain itself that she couldn't feel; it seemed to be what made her bleed, or maybe anything that cut her. Marco sighed before grabbing the girl's face and making her look at him.

"Don't ever, EVER do something like this again." He said in a stern voice. "I don't want you to ever deliberately hurt yourself again, understand?"

Luffy nodded her head even though Marco had gripped it. The man smiled before wrapping the girl into a hug. He put Luffy's head on his shoulder and held her there with a small smile that the girl understood and would listen. This wasn't Luffy, this wasn't the girl who would always run around smiling and not even think about whether something hurt her or not.

* * *

"How's Luffy doing?" Marco looked at Thatch and sighed. It was lunch break and they were at the docks eating. Vista and Izou had joined them and entered the conversation. "You haven't done anything to her have you?"

Marco looked at the man and tried to resist pushing him into the water. He then remembered the incident from the night before and looked up at the sky. "I thought she was doing fine." He said.

"What do you mean?" Izou asked.

"She was beginning to talk a bit more and she has a few new friends at school and she's brought them to the house before. Apparently she's doing a dance routine with them." Marco said.

"The old Luffy, yes, the way she is now, I don't see that possible." Thatch said trying to imagine it.

"Yeah, but she isn't huddled in a corner. But last night she did something…" Marco began.

"What?" Vista asked a little impatiently.

"I walk in and she's cutting her wrist with a knife." Marco said downing half of the bottle of rum he had. The other three stared at him. "It wasn't due to depression. She got cut at school and it didn't hurt so she wanted to make sure."

"She doesn't feel pain?" Izou asked a little shaken.

"No, she doesn't feel pain when something cuts her. Slaps she can feel." Marco said correcting the cross-dresser.

"You slapped her?" Thatch asked in an accusing voice.

"First thing that happened when I saw her doing that." Marco said.

"Luffy seems to be sinking down." Izou said looking at the ocean. "How did we meet her again exactly?"

"That was when Marco was sent to Ace's house because he missed a day without calling in." Vista said pointing to the man.

_*Flashback*_

_Marco looked at the piece of paper and then at the apartment number. He was at the right place. The newest recruit who had joined them a few weeks ago had taken the day off and never told them. Marco had to go and make sure he was okay and figure out why. _

_Ace had told them where he lived but that was about it. The guy was only eighteen or so but was already in this gang with them. Sure Marco was twenty three and that that wasn't that much older but Ace was barely an adult. Oyaji still referred to him as gaki most of the time._

_The man knocked on the front door and waited for Ace to open it. When it did, Marco had to look down to see who had answered the door. The blonde looked down at the small girl who was smiling up at him. _

_Marco stared at her. She couldn't have been more than thirteen or fourteen, fifteen max. She had short, messy black hair and large brown eyes. The smile seemed to be permanent on her childish face._

_"Are you a friend of Ace's?" the girl asked in a hyper voice. Marco nodded. The girl moved out of the ay and let him walk in. "Ace had one of his fits so he'll be hear shortly." The girl giggled a bit before closing the door._

_Marco looked at the small girl. She was wearing what looked like an oversized long-sleeved shirt as a dress. Or maybe PJs since it was night time. The girl smiled and ran up to another man as he came out of the hallway. Marco recognized Ace and smiled._

_"Hey Marco, what are you doing here?" Ace asked picking the small girl up. The girl placed her head on his shoulder half out of it and Ace wrapped his arms around her to prevent her from falling._

_"Wonder why you weren't at work." Marco said looking at the girl still. _

_"Ah, shit, sorry, guess I forgot to call. Let me put Luffy to sleep real quick." The freckled faced man said walking towards the hallway._

_"Not tired." The girl said mumbling._

_"Course you aren't," Ace said with a small chuckle. "Course you aren't."_

_Marco moved to the small living room Ace had gestured to and sat at the small couch that was in it. Ace came in a few minutes later and sat next to the man. Ace laughed a bit to himself before smiling at the man._

_"Sorry about that." He said._

_"Who is she?" Marco asked curiosity getting the best of him._

_"Ah, that's Luffy. She's my little sister." Ace said with pride._

_"Sister? You had one?" Marco asked. Ace had never brought her over or said anything about the girl._

_"Yeah, she's a few years younger than me and if it wasn't for her I probably wouldn't have looked for a job." Ace said with a small laugh._

_"Meaning if you didn't have to take care of her you wouldn't give shit about life." Marco interrupted._

_"HAHAH, yup, Luffy's everything to me." Ace said with a small smile._

_"Parents?" Marco asked._

_"Died years ago, so she only has me." Ace said with a smile._

_"You're going to give hell to her boyfriend." Marco commented._

_"Burn him till he's dead and go from there." Ace said with a laugh._

_"Okay, but why weren't you in?" Marco asked._

_"Lost a bet with Luffy and had to play with her. If you hear anything about graffiti on the park, it wasn't us. I'm just going to say that now." Ace said with serious face._

_"School?" Marco asked remembering that it was a weekday._

_"Ditched, we don't really care." Ace said with a shrug._

_"Some brother." Marco commented with a sweat drop._

_*end*_

"After that she came over once and everyone fell in love with her." Thatch said with a smile. Marco nodded.

"Especially Stefan." Izou commented remembering how Oyaji's golden retriever jumped the girl the first time she had come over.

Marco smiled. He wanted to see that Luffy again. The one who was always smiling and never caring about what the world around her was doing. The one who broke rules and never stopped laughing. The one he had fallen in love with. _

* * *

_I know it's kinda short but was wanting to get it done. This was something I had pop in my head last night and I wanted to try it out. Yes, Stefan is an actual dog that Oda said belonged to Oyaji in an_ SBS section. He is a white retriever with a mustache like Oyaji's  
_


	6. Wills and Promises

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 6 Wills and Promises

Luffy looked at the envelope that was handed to her. Marco sat and watched as she slowly opened it and pulled out the piece of paper. Marco could see the thin lines of the healing cuts on her wrist. The one on her arm looked the same.

"It's Ace's will. Apparently they found one in the house when they were moving everything to a storage place." Marco said as the girl looked at the words that were typed on the paper. They were all words that Ace would say.

"I get to do what I want with what we have." The girl said slowly.

"You and Ace didn't have much?" Marco asked. Luffy shook her head and handed the will to Marco. The man looked at Marco paled as he read the list.

"You two were heirs to a fortune that your grandfather made?" the man asked looking at the amount of money that was written at the bottom. Luffy nodded her head. She was the heir now.

"Gee-chan wanted us to continue with what he had but we didn't want to." The girl said looking down.

"Legally you still get the money when he dies though." Marco said looking through all that the two of them had left behind to start a simple life with fewer rules.

"Uhn." Luffy said not looking up.

"You going back to your grandfather? I don't think he came to the funeral." Marco asked but Luffy shook her head.

"Don't like that place." The girl said standing up and heading to her room. Marco watched her go and sat down to continue to go through the things in the list.

"Never easy for you no matter where you go huh?" he said setting the will down and glancing at a photo of Ace and Luffy along with Marco on the wall. "You were trying to protect her till the end…"

* * *

"Okay, so we got the first part done." Nami said as they breaked after school. Luffy was standing and slightly panting at how much work had to be done.

"We have to somehow get the last two parts done within three days." Vivi said panting slightly.

"I hope we can." Keimi said looking at Luffy who was still catching her breath a bit. "Luffy-chin, you're really good at endurance and stuff."

"I'm a bit surprised myself." Nami said looking at the girl who looked at them. "Oh yeah, how did it work with Marco?

"He kissed me again." Luffy said.

Nami smiled. "I knew it!" the girl cheered. "You have got to ask him out."

"Nami-san; that would seem to be pushing it a bit. Besides, how old is Marco-san?" Vivi asked.

"Twenty five." Luffy said drinking a few sips of the water she had.

"Only an eight year difference that isn't that bad and we are so going to get him to go out with you." Nami said with a grin. "How about we come over tomorrow and I got an idea."

"Okay." Luffy said.

"Luffy-san is getting better at talking to us." Vivi said with a smile.

"But only us and Marco." Nami said as someone came up to Luffy and asked her something and the girl reverted to her shy self. "I don't think it's people she's scared of."

"What do you mean Nami-chin?" Keimi asked as Luffy tried her hardest with the one guy.

"I think something about what her brother meant to her and how he was killed has something to do with it." Nami said watching Luffy as the girl almost sighed in relief at the other man's leaving.

"Killed?" Vivi asked. "I thought Luffy-san's older brother was in an accident."

"He was." Nami said. "Luffy was in it too but another police officer rammed into the vehicle they were in."

"That must have scared her." Keimi said looking at Luffy who was walking towards them. She gave the other two girls a warning.

"Will Marco mind us coming over?" Nami asked and Luffy shook her head no again.

"I'll tell him tonight." Luffy said.

* * *

"Hm, sure I got no problem with them coming over." Marco said as Luffy asked him that night. He was glad that the girl was talking more. "Are you going to be practicing the dance?"

Luffy shook her head no. "We're doing it at school. Nami wants to do something else."

"Hm, okay, I'm going to bring Thatch and few of the guys over okay?" Marco asked and Luffy nodded. That was fine with her. She liked them.

Marco put his head on her hair and smiled as Luffy looked up at him with her large brown eyes. She was cute when she looked up at him like that.

* * *

"I still can't get used to the fact that you live in a place like this." Nami said as the girls walked to Luffy's room.

They looked around it and noticed what Luffy had been like before the accident. Photos and poster along with childish drawings filled the walks. The bookshelf had spray paint cans and figures. Clothes were on the floor and all seemed to be boy's clothes that were obviously too big for Luffy's small figure.

"Are these your brother's clothes?" Keimi asked as she picked up a pair of black shorts. Luffy nodded.

"They smell like Ace." She said looking at the hat that was on her head. "Hat too."

"Okay, I figured you didn't have one." Nami said looking through the closet and piles of clothes that littered the girl's room. "Vivi, help me with this."

* * *

Marco opened the apartment door and was met by the green haired friend of Luffy's. The girl was smiling at him and smiled at the three men behind him. "Nami-chin asked if you could wait in the living room." The girl said to the confused men.

"Uh…" Marco said walking into his house and going to the living room.

"Nami-chin and Vivi-chin have been working on it for a while and want to show you it." the girl said running into the direction of Luffy's room.

"Okay, I'm confused." Marco said sitting. Thatch sat next to him and Izou and Vista sat on the chairs.

"I wonder what it could be." Izou said as they noticed the three girls walk out with Luffy behind them.

Marco stood up and looked at Luffy who was blushing slightly at what he saw. The girls had somehow put Luffy into a long flowy blue-white dress that reached the floor. It was short sleeved and somewhat low cut. A red hibiscus stood out in her black hair that crowned her childish face which was lightly toughed with makeup.

"Cute." Thatch said looking at the girl who was looking at the ground. Marco could feel heat rise in his cheeks as he watched the girl stand and try not to look at them.

"It took us a while because she is so hard to put makeup onto but we were able to do it. She has to where it until we leave." Nami said proudly as Luffy glanced up at Marco who caught her look and quickly looked away.

* * *

Marco sat on the couch and covered his eyes. Not only had he had to cook for so many people but he also had to deal with Thatch's stupidity and Vista and Nami weren't helping. The girl even knew about him kissing Luffy, though that was probably from the girl herself.

He glanced at Luffy who was watching him curiously. God she looked cute in that dress. What the hell was up with it? Why did he get the feeling that he wanted to kiss the girl so much when she was dressed up like this? It was wrong. He knew that. Yet, why did he still have the temptation to do so?

"Ne, Luffy?" Marco asked the girl who looked at him all the way. "Nami, did she dress you up like that to see how I would react?" Luffy nodded her head. This girl was too honest.

Marco sighed. "Do you want me to do something?" he asked. Was it Luffy who wanted to kiss him? Or was that something she had been told to do and just went along with?

Luffy looked down but Marco didn't fail to notice the small nod she made. The man stood up and went to the chair she was sitting in. The girl looked up at him as he slowly smiled and brought her hand up to his lips, gently brushing them against the small pale hand. Color filled Luffy's cheeks as Marco lifted his head to look at her with a small smile.

"What do you want me to do?" he asked and Luffy looked down again. This she wasn't sure one.

"I liked it when Marco kissed me." The girl said looking up at him. Marco smiled and brought the girl's face up before kissing her again. The same sick selfishness didn't fill him as he realized that Luffy wanted this as well.

Marco put his hands on the arms of the chair and stood over Luffy as he kissed her. Luffy's hands were in the lap and she was leaning up slightly due to the height difference between her and Marco who was bending down. Marco broke the kiss and put his forehead on Luffy's.

"If you need anything, just ask." He said as a promise. "I will always be here to protect you."

Luffy's eyes widened and the girl wrapped her arms around Marco. The action took the blonde haired man by surprise and he only reacted when he felt Luffy shake. The girl was digging her nails into his back.

"Luffy…" he whispered as he put his arms around her to prevent her from falling.

"No, no protecting." The girl said almost in a crying voice. Marco forced Luffy forward and made her look at him. Tears were beginning to run down her scared face. "Marco will disappear too."

"I'm not going anywhere." Marco said sitting the girl back down on the chair and kneeling in front of her. "I promised to stay with you."

"Ace said he'd protect me but he died." Luffy said choking the tears. Marco's face dropped and he brought the girl's head down to his shoulder.

"I'll stay with you and make sure nothing hurts you again. I'll protect you when you need me to." He said and he felt the nod of the girl as she clung to him

* * *

Pretty deep at the end I think and I realized that I have updated three stories today and I still have two more to go. Ah I am tired and since I have been asked about the ages of Marco and Luffy I added them into the story. I keep drawing Luffy in a dress for some reason so I had to add this in here. Hope you like it.


	7. Please Smile Just Once

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 7 Please Smile Just Once

"Okay, we got it all done!" Keimi cheered as they sat down after practice the day before the festival.

"I've got all of our costumes done and I was able to get your hat to match it." Nami said looking at Luffy who happily covered her face with the orange hat.

"There's only one thing left to do." Vivi said looking at the girl as well.

* * *

"You need Luffy to smile and you think I'm the one who can get her to?" Marco asked looking at the girls curiously. What were they trying to get at?

"Luffy was always hanging around you guys before the accident and we think that you guys will know what can get her to smile for the dance." Nami said putting her finger into his face and smiling.

"Luffy always came down to the warehouse after school so…"

"YOSH, WE'LL GO THERE!" Nami said putting her fist into the air.

"OI!" Marco said but stopped when he noticed Luffy walk into the kitchen.

He had suggested that she change out of her school uniform and into day clothes. She walked in with a large long sleeved shirt that was one of her old ones that showed her shoulders and the top part of her back. It was blue with lighter blue stripes and had a large and small star in the corner of it. She still wore Ace's shorts and his hat.

"Hey Luffy-chin, can you show us the warehouse that you went to?" Keimi asked bluntly to the girl who glanced at Marco. The man sighed giving up and the girl nodded her head but curious as to why she was to go there.

"Yay!" Keimi cheered and Nami led them to the living room where they were planning to help Luffy with her homework which she still never turned in.

* * *

Marco came in and stared at the girls and smiled as he saw Luffy trying but like the old Luffy, failing at getting what was said. He walked in and sat on the couch, right behind the girls. Luffy looked up at him when the man put his foot on her head and pouted a bit. Not full out like she always did when Ace would do it to her but enough for Marco to know what she was thinking.

"So your relationship is like this." Nami said watching the event unfold and questioning why it had been done.

"What are you talking about?" Marco asked putting his foot down and staring at the orange haired teen who smiled and bent over to Vivi.

"You love her and will always be there for her, giving everyone the feeling that you have a quiet and simple relationship that is gentle and sweet." The girl said running a finger under Vivi's chin and the blue haired girl tried not to laugh at what she was doing. "But in truth, you tease her and even though she plays along with it, she is shy and broken on the inside allowing you to have complete control." This time Nami pushed the girl over and straddled her hips to represent dominance and looked at Marco who had looked away from the scene while Keimi just laughed at it.

"No now get off, Ace did it to her all the time so it's actually normal for her." the man said and Nami climbed off of Vivi who sat up completely fine with what the girl had done to her.

"So you're the boyfriend who looks at his girl like a younger sister." Nami said trying to figure out what was going on with the two of them.

"NO!" Marco said trying his hardest to get things straight with the girl but not exactly sure about what he was trying to get through to her.

"You never denied Luffy being your girlfriend." Nami pointed out and Marco felt like a complete idiot falling into the hands of a seventeen year old girl.

"Marco I'm hungry." Luffy said turning towards the man and grabbing his leg like she had done whenever she was hungry and wanted food at that moment.

"Okay, I'll get dinner started. You guys staying to?" he asked the other three but already knew the answer, of course they would be and to no surprise they said that they were.

"Is that a tattoo?" Vivi asked looking at the part of Luffy's back that was showing. She hadn't noticed that when Luffy had been putting on the dress. The only part they could see was the purple top to it and Luffy nodded.

* * *

Marco came in to the room to tell them that dinner would be ready in a few and walked in on Nami taking off Luffy's shirt, revealing the red bra she was wearing and turning her around to see her back. Luffy was facing him and her face matched her bra as she noticed that he had walked in on this, though Nami seemed not to be concerned.

"If you get a nose bleed I have the right to laugh at your face and call you a little kid and/or a perverted old man." Nami said looking at the skull mark on the back of the girl and instantly recognizing it as one of the versions of a gang mark that was very famous in this part of the city.

"Luffy-san, are you part of a gang?" Vivi asked recognizing the symbol like the other girl had. The only one who seemed not to understand its meaning was Keimi but as soon as Nami whispered it into her ear, she instantly freaked out.

"Ah, so you saw that." Marco said walking over and tossing Luffy's shirt onto the girl suggesting that she put it on which she did. Marco began to open his own shirt. Once open it showed the tattoo that he had which was a simpler version of Luffy's, for the girls. "We're both part of it."

"You are both members of _the_ Whitebeard crew?" Nami asked and both of them nodded their heads. "What the hell? Does that mean Ace was too?"

"Ace-nii's was on his back." Luffy said looking at them curiously. Was it bad that she was part of this gang?

"Okay, I guess everyone has something they do and isn't it also a warehouse anyway. It shouldn't be that bad and the last thing I heard about the crew was that it ended a street war." Vivi said and Marco just shrugged to words. That had been interesting and everything but he really didn't want to handle something like that again with Ace and Luffy. Both had a tendency to set things on fire and the fact that they always had matches and spray paint didn't help.

"Bomb in a can." Luffy said pulling out said can of spray paint and matches. "Hairspray works to."

"Confiscated." Marco said instantly grabbing the items and putting them on a shelf that was too tall for the girl to reach which made the girl stare at it as if it was the enemy.

"I don't see any real problem in it and it's still a good idea to go there. Luffy-san has friends at the warehouse and it might be fun." Vivi said smiling at the two members. Marco chuckled in a way that ran a shiver down the three girls' spines.

"Just get ready to work a lot and what about the festival?" Marco asked right after remembering it.

"Boo, we have to do that tomorrow. You're coming right?" Nami asked looking at the man who nodded.

"Me and a few other guys. Not everyone can go obviously but about three others will." Marco said looking at Luffy who had decided to climb the shelves to get back her stuff. Marco sighed and stood up once again before picking the girl up and carrying her back to the couch and sitting down with her in his lap. "Shut up girl."

Nami chuckled knowing very well that the man was talking to her and her smart assed mouth at what he had just done. Luffy however didn't seem to mind it at all. The girl had leaned back and was almost lying on Marco who was casually wrapping his arms around the girl and watching them.

"Didn't you say that the warehouse might help you though?" he questioned and Nami slapped her forehead completely forgetting that that had been the main reason behind it.

"Luffy, I'm going to put this down flat and simple for you." The girl said deciding to use plan B which had just been made up in her head. "You have to smile at the concert. If you don't then the whole entire thing will be ruined."

Luffy looked at the girl and nodded her head knowing very well that if she didn't that Nami was going to kill her and that that wasn't very pleasant. "Smile then." Nami said looking at the girl seriously and Luffy swallowed trying to remember the usually motions that were needed for this.

"I think Luffy-chin is going to have trouble with this." Keimi said looking at the girl and then at Marco who seemed to be thinking hard.

"Hm, she's done it before." The blonde said looking at the girl before turning her around and making her face him. Luffy still seemed to be trying to get her face to make the motion she wanted it to but failing. Marco furrowed his eyebrows before smiling when he remembered what had caused Luffy to smile that one time.

Vivi and Keimi blushed slightly as Marco lip locked with the girl in his lap while Nami just cheered it on and watched in expectation of something good. Luffy had gripped Marco's shoulders as soon as he had grabbed her chin and moved her forward. Nami grinned when they parted and a fresh shade of red covered the smaller girl's face. Marco placed Luffy on the floor and went to check dinner but not before whispering something in her ear.

Nami, Vivi and Keimi surrounded Luffy who looked at them with a small grin on her face making the three girl's cheer at the fact that whatever had happened had worked. This also however pounded Luffy with questions and such about what it felt like and all these sort of things.

* * *

"Okay, this is it." Nami said feeling the butterflies appear in her stomach as she stood on the center of the stage and stared at the thick curtain that would reveal hundreds or so people that were going to watch her dance.

She was wearing a dark blue mini skirt that had two white and silver belts covering it and the buckle on the front showed a tangerine that glittered a bit. She was wearing knee high cowboy boots that were a white shade and matching halter top that was mostly orange with the white trim. Her short orange hair was loose and three blue clips were positioned in it.

Vivi was standing next to her with her long blue hair in a pony tail and a long sleeved light blue halter top with a ling flowing white skirt that made Nami question how she was able to dance in it with a pair of blue heels and a light blue necklace around her neck.

Keimi was on her other side with a green tank top that was a box cut and went down to fit nicely on her hips. She was wearing a pair of pink skinny jeans that covered a pair of white flats and had a pink and green belt around her waist that rested on her hips like the shirt. He green hair was in its usual design without any accessory.

Luffy was next to Keimi and was wearing a pair of actual girl's dark blue shorts and a halter top that had ribbons around her stomach and waist and wrists. The red beaded necklace was around her neck and an orange and blue belt around her waist that matched the hat on her head. A pair of white flip flops rested on her feet and a nervous frown on her face.

"Remember to smile Luffy." Nami said and the girl nodded.

"I will." She said looking at the curtain as it began to rise.

* * *

Haha bomb in a can oh that would be so awesome and why I am not allowed with matches and such. I loved writing this chapter and I have to figure out how to do the dance next... should I add the lyrics to the song as well? I can do that if you want and I am listening to Path by Apocolyptica while I'm writing this so look it up if you want to understand why I am in bomb mode right now and that might also be why I can't have hair spray other than the fact that i have no need for that smelly stuff and I am rambling and I hope you liked!


	8. Evacuate the Dance Floor

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 8 Evacuate the Dance Floor

As soon as the curtains opened, the four girls started to dance. Their movements matched beats that were played and they moved as if it was controlling them. The harsh training that Nami had pounded into them had paid off and they weren't even caring that there hundreds of people watching them. Nami wanted to glance at Luffy but couldn't because that would mess her up so she continued to dance as the music wrapped around the whole audience.

_ Oh, oh, evacuate the dancefloor  
Oh, oh, I'm infected by the sound  
Oh, oh, stop, this beat is killing me  
Hey Dr. DJ let the music take me underground_

The four girls jumped up and continued making that audience stare in amazement as they moved. Boys whistled when the girls affectively shook their hips a bit and Marco wanted to hit every single one of them. The attitude was instantly picked up by Thatch who decided to play along as well whistle at the girls which caused Marco to ram his elbow into the man's face, blacking him out.

Izou and Vista smiled at what the man had done though the blonde went back to watching the dance as it played out. The sound of the song changed and a guy was singing now.

_Push it to the top  
Come on and evacuate  
Feel the club is heating up  
Move on and accelerate  
You don't have to be afraid_

When the singer changed again, Luffy walked forward on the small catwalk that was attached to the stage. The other four girls stayed behind and did a simple dance while Luffy did one that matched the beat better.

_Now drop it down low, low  
Let me see you take it to the dancefloor, yo_

When Luffy jumped up after going lower to the ground as the music said to she turned around and walked to the group of girls who were dancing the chorus once again. However when certain words would be said the girl would turn around and mouth them as if she was the one singing the words and not the actual artist.

_Oh, oh, evacuate the dancefloor  
Oh, oh, I'm infected by the sound  
Oh, oh, stop, this beat is killing me  
Hey Dr. DJ let the music take me underground_

When the part about the beat killing them came along the girls had made finger guns and pointed them to their own and the person next to them's head and fired as it was said giving a good reaction. Marco looked up at Luffy and noticed the curve in her mouth as the girl smiled on stage.

The dance ended as the last beat played and the girls got into a small group that ended the song. The audience clapped at this and the girls shot up and hugged each other with Luffy dead in the center. It wasn't hard to tell from the seats, the girls were very happy at that moment.

* * *

"Ah that was so much fun." Nami said walking through the vendors on the outside of the school. The festival would be going on for a few more hours but the girls had had enough after the dance and the five hours that they had to themselves. They hadn't been able to meet up with Marco and the others he had brought with them due to the crowds but he had texted them saying where to meet him.

"It was." Keimi agreed biting into the cotton candy she had bought and holding up a small goldfish she had won at the scooping table.

Luffy took a bite of the takoyaki that Keimi's friend Hachi had made. The girl liked them even though they burnt her mouth a bit as she ate the chewy substance. Nami glanced at Luffy and smiled at the girl who had kept her promise even if she wasn't smiling right now.

"Ne Luffy, what did Marco say to you?" the orange haired girl asked and Luffy turned to her and a small smile came onto her lips.

"Not much." Luffy said simply before biting into her last piece of takoyaki.

"Luffy-san, it must have been important." Vivi said curious as well.

"Ah, there's Marco-chin and the others." Keimi said waving at the men who were now bombarded by high school girls. Well more accurately, Marco was and the others were just stuck in the mayhem. "I think they're in trouble."

"Look out Luffy, your man is being pummeled by the fan clubs." Nami said and Luffy looked at Marco who was trying his hardest to be polite to the girls but still rejecting them and trying to get rid of them.

Luffy ignored it and simply walked up to the group of girls who hadn't noticed the other four's presence. Marco, who was considerably taller than the girl's, was able to see over them and noticed Luffy who attempted to wave at but it had been a mistake. The girls instantly turned to the other four and glared at them.

They stopped when they noticed Nami who smiled at them with her 'I'll add it to your debt smile' and instantly froze. Vivi was smiling sweetly and Keimi had on her usual grin and Luffy just watched them, still eating. The girls looked between the man and the group of four.

"So, are you going to move?" Nami asked and the girls flinched at the woman's voice before stepping aside and the four of them walked up to Marco and the others.

"Thanks for the save." The blonde said looking at the other group who were watching them in strong interest.

"It's okay, they always do that so Nami-san is able to handle them well." Vivi said pointing to the red head who was glaring intently at the girls.

"Nami-chin knows very well that you are with Luffy-chin and is denying them the right to flirt with you." Keimi said though her words caught the attention of the fan clubs.

"You're with HER!" one asked pointing to Luffy who was trying to get the takoyaki sauce off of her cheek using her tongue which entertained Marco a bit.

Marco looked up at them and wrapped an arm around Luffy's shoulder, drawing her closer to him and surprising the girls to no end. "Got a problem with that?" he asked with a small smirk and the girls pointed a finger at Luffy.

"Don't think you can get away with taking him away from us." The head girl said rushing away with the others right behind her.

"Did I take someone?" Luffy asked Marco and the man shook his head before finally helping her get the rest of the sauce off of her face.

"What are you guys doing?" Nami asked and the four men shrugged.

"We took the day off which means we have to take the night shift." Thatch said and Nami sweat dropped at the thought. "Well _we _have to. Mr. Vice Head here just has to make sure he comes in tomorrow."

Marco smirked and led Luffy to his car and the girl waved bye to her friends who waved back. Nami stopped and turned to Thatch and pointed to the man who was still walking in one direction.

"HE'S THE VICE-HEAD!" she asked and the other two girls looked just a surprised.

"Yes, didn't Marco tell you?" Izou asked and Nami began to count beris in her head.

"No wonder he lives in such a nice place." Keimi said thinking about the apartment that they had visited.

"Actually we all live in ones similar to that. Marco doesn't really care much about fancy stuff and neither did Ace so they both lived pretty close to each other." Thatch said correcting the girls.

"How the hell are you so fucking rich?" Nami asked and the men smiled.

"Running a famous warehouse and having an awesome boss has something to do with it." Thatch said walking away as well after waving good bye.

* * *

Luffy laid down on the couch after her shower and lazily grabbed the remote that was on the table in front of her. Marco was taking his shower now so the sound of the water running filled the room. The girl was tired from dancing and walking all day but was also somewhat satisfied with what she had been able to do.

She wished that Ace had been able to see her though. She really wanted him to see her with friends that weren't part of the gang she was in. ace never really told her that she should make friends at school because she had always had them at the warehouse. The fact that Luffy was a trouble maker as well didn't add to the fact that she never got any.

The girl continued to flip but like how it usually was these days, it stopped on MTV and stayed there as music played. Luffy listened to the songs over and over and different things popped in her head as they played. Mostly different dances or fight scenes from animes she would watch with Ace all the time.

The black haired girl never noticed the shower stopping and continued to listen to music as it played. This time the song had words in it that she didn't understand but it was okay since the beat was still good.

"Waka Waka?" Marco questioned as he walked into the room and looked at the girl who looked up at the man.

Marco had a small towel wrapped around his neck and the only thing he was wearing was his usual knee-long pants. His hair was still somewhat wet and dripped a bit as he sat on the couch, moving Luffy's legs onto his lap. The girl looked at him and Marco simply messed up her still damp hair.

"Good job." He said to the girl and a small smile came to Luffy's face at the compliment. Marco smiled at the girl's face before grabbing her ankle and pulling the girl across the couch, surprising Luffy.

The girl's tank top had gone up a bit, revealing her stomach which Marco instantly grabbed and lifted the girl up. Luffy grabbed Marco's arms as the man sat her in his lap and the man gently kissed her forehead. "You really are small." Marco said looking at the girl who was blushing slightly against her pale skin.

Marco smiled remembering how tanned the skin used to me before the accident. Luffy wasn't the kind of girl that would sunbathe on her front porch of her apartment. Luffy's tan had come from the work she had done at the warehouse port all the time. Luffy's pale skin didn't fit her but Marco could tell that Luffy was getting back to her usual complexion.

"Not small." Luffy said with a small pout. "Guys just get too tall."

"You don't like the fact that men are taller than you?" Marco questioned and Luffy nodded seriously. Marco smiled before turning the girl around and wrapping his arms around her so that they could watch TV together.

* * *

I suck at talking about dancing cause I can't get it to sound right without totally messing it up and everything but I did my best and yes I had an actual dance running through my head as I made this chapter but like I said it is impossible to write it down. Yes Waka Waka is a song which is done by Shakira. I also hate it when guys are taller than me. In middle school we are the same height and then high school comes along and they shoot up half a foot. it pisses me off because pretty much all of my guy friends are taller than me. Anyway, hope you like this chapter.


	9. Shattered

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 9 Shattered

It took time to clean up after the festival which resulted in a postponing of the trip to the warehouse. Nami sighed as she placed the broom against the windowsill in one of the hallways of the school. She really hated having to deal with this sort of crap.

"I think we should only have to clean up what we did." The red head said once again and Vivi looked at her with a sigh.

"It can't be helped Nami-san." The blue haired girl said with a small smile. "The night after a group came in and trashed the place."

"It was probably some other school who hadn't been as successful as us." Nami said looking at the trash that covered the halls that still needed to be cleaned up.

"Gang." Luffy said and the three girls glanced at Luffy who was pointing to a symbol on the wall that had been spray painted in black.

"How do you know that this is a gang symbol Luffy-chin?" Keimi asked glancing at the mark. It was a circle mark that was smiling and the black circled eyes seemed to have one that was an eye patch.

"Gang mark." The girl said running her hand on her back right where hers was.

"But why would they trash our school?" Vivi asked glancing out the window and noticing a strange man who was looking up at the school. "Who's that?" Vivi asked and the other three walked over to look at the silver haired man.

Nami noticed the brick he was carrying and told them to duck as the man threw it up to the window, shattering the glass. The four girls went to the ground and Keimi screamed in fear as the glass prayed them. Teachers instantly ran out of the classrooms and looked at the hallway.

"Are you four okay?" one asked and Nami stood up and nodded before glancing at the others.

"Luffy?" she asked noticing the black haired girl who was still in a ball. "You okay?"

Luffy kept her face hidden in her knees and her hands at her ears, trying to get rid of all sounds. The sound of glass shattering came to her ears and her breathing became harsh as the images from the accident filled her head.

"Luffy?" her name was called again, this time more urgent but the girl heard nothing.

"I'm sorry." The girl whispered and a hand touched her shoulder, shaking her slightly.

"Luffy-san are you okay?" but the girl ignored the words and shot open her eyes and even though she knew that he was gone, saw Ace lying next to her.

"Ace, don't go." The girl said in a pleading tone and Nami instantly brought out her cell even though the teachers were against it.

"Marco you had better damn pick up." The girl said as Luffy continued to cry for her brother.

_"Hello?"_ the voice belonged to Marco and Nami sighed in relief at it.

"Oi, Luffy's acting weird." The girl said even though she knew that would be of no help. She glanced down at the girl who was gripping her hair even harder than she had been before.

_"What are you talking about girl?" _Marco asked and Nami didn't answer as Luffy all of a suddenly screamed and rammed her fist into a large piece of glass on the ground, shattering it and creating the same noise as earlier which scared the girl even more. _"Never mind, I'll be right there."_

The phone hung up and Nami went next to Luffy like the other girls had and tried to prevent the girl from flailing and getting herself hurt even more than what she already was. Luffy ignored the blood that was coming from her hand probably because she couldn't feel it and continued to call out for her dead brother.

"What the hell is wrong with her?" Alvida asked staring at the girl.

Nami shot her head up to the leader of the fan clubs and glared with mass killing intent. The black haired woman looked away as to prove that the red head couldn't scare her but in truth was terrified of the look. "Shut the hell up bitch." Nami said spitting poison and the woman backed up.

"Bite me you witch." The woman said before glancing at Luffy who was crying now and trying to get whatever was playing through her head out of it. "I don't get what's wrong with her, but Marco-san must only be with her out of pity."

"Would you shut up already?" Nami asked standing up and going in front of the taller woman. "Luffy's having a fucking panic attack and you're questioning whether Marco loves her or not?"

"The girl is just unstable." Alvida said scoffing it off before noticing the blonde from the festival walking through the halls before turning towards them and walking in their direction.

Much to Alvida's shock, Marco walked right pass her and instantly went in front of Luffy who hadn't noticed that he was there. The girl was still holding her head and still crying and whispering ineligible words. Marco frowned and looked at the other girls.

"What happened?" he asked them, ignoring the teachers who were questioning who he was.

"Someone through a brick at the window and it shattered. After that she started acting like this." Nami said ignoring Alvida who was trying to get Marco's attention. "I think it was the glass shattering that freaked her out."

"Marco-san, why are you associating with a girl like this?" Alvida asked but she never got an answer for as soon as the word escaped her lips, Nami had her fist in contact with her plastic surgery nose. Alvida fell backwards and her little followers stared at Nami in shock.

"Get out of my sight." The red head said and the girl instantly ran, leaving their fallen leader behind.

Marco did nothing about what had happened and proceeded on grabbing Luffy who was still curled up in a ball. The man was able to get her into a carrying position and stood up and began to walk to the exit of the school. Nami, Vivi and Keimi followed, once again ignoring the teachers who watched them leave.

Luffy glanced down at Luffy who had fainted from whatever painful memories had played through her head. "In the accident, one thing that was noted was the fact that every single window in the car had been shattered completely." Marco said as he led the girls to his car.

Thatch stuck his head out the window and noticed Luffy's state before sliding into the passenger's seat and Marco got shot gun. The three girls slid into the back and Marco allowed it as he positioned Luffy on his lap. The man instantly drove off of school grounds and towards Marco's apartment.

* * *

Marco stared at the girl who was now sleeping in her room and then at the other three who had littered the floor after calling their parents and telling them where they would be. The man ran a hand through Luffy's hair before standing up and leaving the room, shutting the door behind him.

Marco walked out to eh living room where Thatch looked up at him with a small smile. "Well, that was an unexpected turn." The man said with dry humor as Marco sat down next him and closed his eyes slightly.

"And I finally got her to be open." Marco said glancing at the hallway slightly before sighing again. "Stupid gang."

"Gang?" Thatch questioned and Marco pulled out a piece of paper that had a sketch of what Nami had told them was a gang marking that Luffy had found. She had also noticed it on the chest of the man who had thrown the brick.

"The Bellamy Pirates." Thatch said recognizing the mark and Marco nodded. "What are you going to do about them?"

"I'm going to be like a gang member and send each and every one of them to hell." Marco said simply and Thatch smiled slightly.

"You have to get Oyaji's permission first." Thatch reminded the man and Marco looked at him.

"I'm not stupid you idiot." Marco said ramming his fist into Thatch's face.

"I know I know, but still, you have to get permission." The man said standing up. "What are you going to do with her now?"

"I'll bring her there tomorrow." Marco said and Thatch raised an eyebrow at it.

"That a good idea?" he asked and Marco shrugged.

"If it makes her worse then I'll just have to start over." Marco said not looking at the man.

"Marco, Luffy isn't some project that you can just start over on." Thatch said and the man looked at her before sighing slightly.

"I know, I-I just don't know what to do in this sort of situation. I've never had to deal with someone who was so mentally broken like this." The blonde man said putting his face into his hand.

"Just act like you have." Thatch said with a smile. "It will show her that everything is fine."

"Yeah, guess you're right." The man said and Thatch smiled left the man alone for a while so that he could think about what to do next.

Luffy was a porcelain doll, one that was hand painted and made of glass with silky black hair and large brown glass eyes. Someone accidentally knocked her onto a wooden floor and shattered her. Marco had found a lot of the pieces and had gotten the girl almost all the way back together, when someone threw a brick at the girl, and shattered her even more.

* * *

I knew that I indicated the glass at the beginning of the story for a reason and thanks to an idea someone had I was able to remember what it was. I enjoyed writing this chapter surprisingly even though it talks about Luffy having a total break down. Hope you liked.


	10. River of Memories

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 10 River of Memories

"Thanks for letting us spend the night." Nami said to Marco in the morning after the incident. Vivi and Keimi had done the same when they had to leave as well.

"No problem, I should be thanking you for helping Luffy out." Marco said as the girl left before closing the door and glancing down the hall to the room where Luffy was still asleep. "Treat her like usual huh?"

The blonde haired man walked down the hall and opened the unclean room's door and walked in. Luffy was still asleep on her bed, the sheets covering her like they had when Marco had put her to bed the night before. The man walked over to the red and black sheet covered bed and sat on the rim, looking at Luffy with a small smile.

The man absentmindedly ran a hand through the girl's black hair that had grown since the funeral. The ebony colored hair now reached her shoulders and covered her face more than usual. Marco noticed Luffy's face twitch and watched as her brown eyes opened slowly and stared up at him. Marco smiled a good morning to the girl and allowed her to sit up and look around.

"You okay?" he asked and Luffy turned to him before wrapping her arms around Marco's neck and holding him there. "Luffy?"

"Nightmare." Luffy said into his shoulder and Marco smiled a sigh and patted the girl's back.

"They aren't real." He said to reassure the girl.

"But it did happen." Luffy said looking at Marco. "Ace did die."

Marco swallowed silently before moving Luffy so that the girl was facing him and that her head was in his hands. "I know that Ace did die, but he doesn't want you to be hurting yourself over it." Marco said and Luffy nodded her head for even though she wanted Ace back, she knew for a fact what she was doing wasn't something he would want her to do. "Let's go someplace."

Luffy looked up at Marco and the man smiled slightly and stood up, his hand wrapped around hers. Luffy stood up to and followed the man to the door before Marco stopped and glanced at the uniform that the girl was still wearing.

"Maybe you should get dressed first." He said and Luffy nodded glancing at the skirt and Marco left her to do so.

Luffy came out again in an outfit that once again, belonged to Ace. Marco sighed knowing very well that it couldn't be helped and the two of them exited the apartment. Marco ignored his car and kept a grip on the girl's hand as they walked down the streets of Grandline.

The two of them ignored the people that watched them as they moved through the busy streets and jay-walked across many sections. Eventually they got to where they had planned on going, a canal that was used for fishing and swimming. A downhill grassy slope was warmed by the mid morning sun and dry from there being no rain.

Marco walked down the stairs that led to the path that was near the canal but stopped a ways down and turned to his right, leading the girl to the grassy area. Marco sat on the ground and gestured for Luffy to do the same. The man spread his legs and moved Luffy in front of him, hugging her slightly and watching the water.

"You and Ace used to some here all the time." He said as the girl leaned back slightly and watched the sky.

"Ah." Luffy said looking at Marco with a small smile. "Ace-nii taught me to skip rocks."

_*Flashback*_

_"Okay, you have to snap your wrist and shoot it at the same time." An eighteen year old Ace said to his younger sister who was concentrating hard on the smooth, flat pebble in her fingers. Ace did what he had said and Luffy watched in amazement as the rock skipped four times before finally sinking down._

_"Amazing Ace!" Luffy said jumping up and down and Ace put his hands on his hips, quite proud of himself. "Yosh, I'm going to do it now!"_

_The girl spun her hand before throwing the rock into the water. Ace and Luffy watched in silence as the rock instantly sank before Ace cracked up and laughed. "IT'S NOT FUNNY!" Luffy said hitting her brother in the head which just made him laugh even harder._

_"Okay, okay, let's go on the hill for a while." The freckled faced man said messing up the girl's already messed up hair and leading her up the grassy hill. The sun was beginning to sink, giving the canal a red tint. _

_Ace sat down and Luffy instantly claimed his lap though Ace didn't mind it and wrapped his arms around the smaller girl. Luffy laughed a bit as Ace began to tickle her stomach and she curled forward a bit which gave Ace an even better grip and advantage._

_"Oh, those two look so cute." _

_Ace looked up at a pair of elder ladies who had been walking by and smiled at them. They noticed his smile and waved before walking up to him and Luffy who was now asleep, still curled up in his lap._

_"Is she your little sister?" the one with gray hair asked and Ace nodded._

_"Yup." He said looking at the black haired girl with adoration._

_"You two must be very close." The other said, her hair obviously died to keep it red._

_"Of course." Ace said and the two women chuckled slightly._

_"Well, you two should be heading home soon, it's getting dark and your parents will be worried." The gray haired one said and Ace stood up, still holding Luffy._

_"Thank you, Luffy, come on and wake up." The boy said looking at his sister._

_"Tired." Luffy said gripping Ace's neck and the man sighed before moving the girl onto his back and slightly bowing to the women before heading the direction of his and Luffy's home._

_*End*_

Marco ran a hand through Luffy's hair, even though it was still the afternoon Luffy had fallen asleep. He couldn't blame the girl because even though she had been asleep for the night, with the nightmare, it probably didn't seem like much of a sleep.

"Oh what a cute couple."

Marco looked up at a pair of elderly lady who smiled at him when they noticed his stare. Marco smiled back and the two of them looked at the small girl in his lap before glancing at each other.

"She's the spitting image of her isn't she?' the one with red haired asked and the other nodded.

"Image of whom?" Marco asked and the women smiled at him before sitting in front of the younger man.

"A few years ago, a brother and his sister were sitting in this very same spot and in a similar way you two are now." The grey haired woman said and Marco raised an eyebrow.

"Was the man a black haired teen with freckles?" Marco asked with a small smile and the women looked at him with surprise before nodding. "Then this is the same girl."

"No wonder she looked so familiar." The first to speak said glancing at the sleeping girl.

"From the way her brother acted to her, I'm guessing he gives you trouble as her boyfriend." The gray haired woman said with a small laugh.

"He would." Marco said running a finger down Luffy's spine, "But Ace died in a car crash about a month ago."

The woman stared at the two youngsters before looking at the ground; one seemed to send a silent prayer to heavens. "Was that the young man who was killed when a police officer rammed into his car?" one asked and Marco nodded before gesturing to Luffy.

"She was in the car as well." The blonde said and the women glanced at the girl with a hint of sympathy on their faces.

"I wonder how it hit her." one said and Marco smiled sadly.

"Pretty hard. Luffy only had her brother since they were little." The man said and the gray haired one instantly looked up.

"I had told him that their parents would be worried about them as well." The woman said remembering things from years ago.

"You didn't know so Ace probably didn't tell you." Marco said standing up slightly and moving Luffy onto his back knowing very well that she wasn't going to be woken up. "Take care of yourselves." The man walked back to the direction of his apartment knowing very well that he would have to explain to Oyaji where he had been.

* * *

I had this typed up last night but never got to post it because me, being the tallest person in my house, is in charge of putting up certain decorations for each holiday. This time it is halloween. And I don't mean scary epic stuff that halloween is meant for, I mean smiling scare crows and pumpkins. I mean seriously, my mom can't even get it through her brain deprived head that halloween is meant to scare people and get high off of sugar and stuff. Any way I am not abusing my other fics. I just have been too busy with 100 pages of reading for government that I was given 2 days to read. I have read none and they are due tomorrow. By Peoples and no I am not doing my homework. back to another fiction. 


	11. Join and Brothers

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 11 Join and Brothers

Luffy walked through the warehouses that littered the port with her three friends behind her who were once again gawking at the sight around them. People were whistling at the girls and some were offering them to join in their 'work' though they were ignored.

Luffy walked easily through the place even though it had been a while since she had last been there. By now, walking through the buildings and dodging things was almost reflex more than anything else. Nami, Vivi and Keimi seemed to be having more trouble and were always behind, making Luffy stop and wait for them to catch up.

"Damn how can you maneuver through this place so easily?" Nami asked catching her breath as they had an easy walk along the boardwalk to the largest warehouse here.

"Used to it." Luffy said as they entered the gates and then the building, instantly catching the attention of practically every person in the place.

"Luffy!"

"Hey you're back!"

"How are you feeling?"

"Woof."

"Woof?" Vivi questioned before noticing a dog running up and tackling the black haired girl in front of them.

Luffy fell and hit her head on the cement floor but seemed unaffected while the dog on top of her continued to lick her face. Luffy tried to get the golden retriever off of her but failed and was only able to get it off when Marco came and lifted the animal off of her.

"Let her breath Stefan." He said with a small laugh before helping Luffy to her feet.

"So you guys really did come." He said and a frown came to Nami's face.

"Of course, we said that we were going to." She said and a small chuckle came from the group.

"There's a reason why Luffy is in our gang." Vista said and a shiver ran through the spines of the three girls.

"Why do I have feeling that I don't want to be here anymore?" Nami said as Luffy led them to a place where they could change out of their school uniforms and into decent clothes.

"Do we have to work?" Keimi asked and Luffy nodded as she changed into a pair of her old shorts.

The girls looked at Luffy's outfit and questioned whether they were actually Luffy's clothes or not. Her outfit consisted of shorts that went down to her thighs and a cropped t-shirt that revealed her mark. They were wearing similar outfits more of because they were actually always dressed up as girls.

"We move stuff." Luffy said and they walked out and Luffy walked over to Marco with the girls behind her.

"Okay, we need help getting boxes off of the conveyer belt and onto the ship that's docked outside." The man said and Luffy nodded and gestured for the three girls to follow her.

Vivi stared in amazement at the sight of the ocean and a large ship that was docked at an island that was attached to the clear mirror. The ship was a merchant ship and a conveyer belt filled with boxes and grates of different sizes was heading onto it. Luffy walked over to the ship and began to climb up the side of it, the other three right behind her.

The men on the ship stared at the girls in question but stopped when they noticed that the girls were heading towards the belt and began to unload boxes. Luffy was able to lift them by herself but the other three needed to work together to be able to lift even one up and onto the deck. They stared at Luffy as the girl easily lifted a box that was her height and move it to a stack, easily placing it on top.

"Are you a monster or something?" Nami asked bluntly and Luffy shrugged before helping them carry stuff.

* * *

"That was harder than it looked." Vivi said sitting with everyone else as food was handed out to them. She politely accepted the food as Marco, Thatch and Izou sat with them with Vista right behind them.

"Luffy has been helping us for a few years so she's used to the weights." Marco said sitting next to the girl who was happily biting into the meal that she had been given. "We have to pull an all-nighter again."

"Eh, you guys have to work all night?" Nami asked and Luffy nodded as Stefan came over and claimed her lap even though he wasn't a lap dog.

"Yeah, I guess Luffy won't be able to go to school tomorrow." Vista said and the three girls turned to their black haired friend who was preventing her food from getting taken by the dog that was sitting on her legs. Luffy looked at them and a shy like smile came to her lips.

"I want to stay and help Luffy-chin." Keimi said pulling out her cell and texting her friend.

"I can go a day without school." Vivi said doing the same.

"Ditching… eh." Nami said with a slight shrug and texting her sister though it she knew that it wouldn't be read till later.

"You have some good friends." Marco commented and Luffy looked at him and smiled a Luffy smile before noticing that Stefan had finished her dinner.

* * *

"Stefan-san, please don't jump onto the box." Vivi said around two in the morning.

All of the girls, minus Luffy, were tired but they kept working. Luffy was helping them carry a box of metal poles though she was doing most of the carrying and Stefan had decided that it would make the perfect place to get a ride to the other side of the warehouse where they were going.

"Stefan-chin doesn't like to listen to others." Keimi said with a small laugh and Vista chuckled at the four girls who were working as hard as any of them.

"He only listens to Oyaji." The man said and the three girls looked at Luffy confused.

"Boss." The black haired girl said as Vivi tried to shoo the white dog off of the box.

"Ah, speaking of him." Vista said and the four girls glanced at a tall and older man who was well built and strong walk through the area.

"He's kinda intimidating." Nami said before noticing that Stefan hadn't gotten off of the box. "Oi dog, get off."

"I thought I said that he only listens to-" Vista began but stopped when Stefan glanced at Nami and froze before jumping off and running behind Oyaji who raised an eyebrow at the girls.

"Well I'll be damned." Thatch said as he walked over to them and looked at Stefan who was watching Nami who huffed. "I guess we found someone he'll listen to other then you."

"Who are they?" the man asked only recognizing Luffy who he was glad was back.

"Ah, that's Vivi, the blue haired girl, Keimi, who has green hair and the one who scared Stefan is Nami. They're friends of Luffy's and since she's staying the night they figured that they would help out as well." Thatch said as the girls got the box where it was supposed to be and placed it on the ground. "They really work hard."

"Hm, they seem to be enjoying themselves." The older man said noticing the girls laughing as they talked and went back to where they would have to get more boxes to move.

* * *

"Eh, the old man is wondering if we want to join?" Nami asked and Luffy nodded her head.

The day after the day that they had helped, Marco had told Luffy that Oyaji had wondered if the three girls might want to join as well. Luffy has said that she would ask and now the girls were thinking about it.

"Working is fine but being part of the gang…" Nami said not one hundred percent sure on what to think.

"The Whitebeards did something amazing the other day." Vivi said and the three of them looked at the girl, "Apparently one of them took down an entire gang by himself."

"Wow, to be part of such an amazing group." Keimi said in amazement though Nami sweat dropped at the fact that the girl didn't grasp what was meant.

"We'll have to think about it." Nami said and Luffy nodded her head, understanding.

* * *

"We have a new student today, well actually two." Nico-sensei said bringing the class to attention. "I'd like to introduce to you, Sanji and Zoro. They are two brothers who just moved here."

A blonde teen and one with green hair walked into the room and girls went head over heels for them. Sanji, the blonde had dark blue eyes that seemed to get into every girl's heart and a soft smile that they couldn't help but like. Zoro seemed to be colder and more unsociable but girls loved his looks and deadly green eyes.

"Say hello to the hotties." Nami said smiling at them. "Alvida might just forget about your man and aim for them."

"Hm." Luffy said looking out the window and ignoring the two new students.

"They seem to want to say something." Vivi said smiling politely and having her full attention on the brothers.

"My name is Sanji and this is my half brother Marimo." The blonde said thrusting thumb at the teen next to him.

"What was that swirly brow?" Zoro asked but Nico-sensei stopped the fight.

"Please do your introductions right and without violence." She said and a heart popped into Sanji's eye.

"Of course mademoiselle, please allow me to apologize for being so rude." The man said bowing slightly to her and the class.

"Ah, he's a sweet talker." One said and Nami sighed at the girls in their class's stupidity.

"I say he's a womanizer." Nami said and Vivi sighed.

"That's rude Nami-san." She said.

"The one with green hair is scary." Keimi said glancing at Zoro who was looking at the class though it seemed more like a glare.

"Ah, beautiful ladies, I can't believe that I didn't see you before."

The four girls turned to Sanji who was bowing in front of them with a heart in his eye. "May I ask the names of such pretty and cute ladies?"

"I'm Nami." The red head said hoping the man would go away; she liked him better when he didn't talk.

"Vivi." The blue haired girl said politely.

"I'm Keimi." The green haired girl said and Sanji glanced at the black haired who was ignoring him again.

"That's Luffy." Nami said for the girl. "She doesn't like talking to others that much."

"Ah, I don't wish to become impolite to such a cute girl." The blonde said and a tick mark grew on the orange haired girl's forehead.

"Watch it." Nami said trying to calm down slightly. "Luffy's taken and I doubt you want to mess with her man."

"Eh, who is the bastard that stole my Luffy-chan?" Sanji asked and he noticed that the black haired girl slightly turned to him.

Sanji fell backwards and only barely caught himself on a desk and sweated as he looked at Luffy. The girl was barely looking at him and he could only see part of her right eye but there was so much intensity in the glare that it scared him.

"What's wrong you idiot?" Zoro asked walking up to his brother and glancing at the girls.

Zoro was taken aback by the look that Luffy had too, even though it wasn't directed at him. How the hell could such a small and weak looking girl pack so much into a simple glare? Luffy looked away again and the two brothers were able to regain themselves.

"Luffy-san doesn't like having people insult her friends." Vivi said not blaming the girl for the look she had given Sanji.

* * *

"How did you do that?" Nami asked at lunch and Luffy looked up at the girl before glancing around the classroom. Sanji was being hogged by girls and Zoro had disappeared.

"They taught me." Luffy said quietly and Nami raised her eyebrows.

"You mean the guys at the warehouse?" Vivi asked and Luffy nodded her head.

"Wow, that was amazing." Keimi said and Nami had to agree, that look could be very useful.

"Those boys are really annoying." She said glancing at Sanji who seemed to enjoy the female crowd. "I thought they were hot at first but after that, I really don't like them."

"Yeah, Sanji-san even called Marco-san a bastard and Luffy-san his." Vivi said with a small frown. "He's a really rude person."

"I've been thinking about it since then," Nami said and she turned to Luffy with a smile. "My life is pretty boring."

"What do you mean." Keimi asked and they all paid attention to the girl.

"My sister is going to be marrying her boyfriend soon and I decided to move out when that happens. I don't want to be with them when that happens and I honestly don't like her boyfriend that much. After I do that, I'm going to need the money and I'm going to have very little to do." Nami said and the girls waited for her to do continue. "If joining a gang with my friends will allow me to have fun and get money, then so be it."

"I've been thinking about it too." Vivi said smiling at Nami's answer. "Papa said that I can do whatever I want with my life. Even though I love him and everyone, I don't really want to continue the family business. It might be fun as well."

"I want to join as well!" Keimi said and the girls looked at her.

"But didn't you say that you wanted to be a fashion designer?" Nami asked and Keimi nodded.

"Yeah but I want to do this with my friends and everything but I can always be both." Keimi said with a large smile and the other smiled as well.

"Is this okay Luffy?" Nami asked and Luffy looked at them before smiling a bit and nodding.

It was perfect.

* * *

Ah that was fun and I realized that this is getting more comedy in it then I meant for it to have. Oh well, nothing I can do about it. I happen to like this story and the way it is going. I know I kinda made Sanji like the enemy and everything but I needed a reason for Nami, Vivi and Keimi to join the gang and make it reasonable and that seemed right. Never make fun of Luffy's friends, she will not like that. Stefan is awesome, I absolutely love him even though he never really appears in the series. Hope you liked.


	12. What the Hell?

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 12 What the Hell?

Luffy gripped her bag as she prepared to leave for the day with Nami, Vivi and Keimi. The other girls were already ready and were waiting for her and Luffy quickly walked up to them as the four made it to the exit of the large school. Nami sighed as she noticed that girls were rushing outside.

"I bet Sanji and Zoro are having another fight." The red headed girl said staring at the back of some of the girls. Ever since the two brothers came, practically every girl was trying to get them, particularly the fan club.

"I don't think they're that bad." Keimi said and Nami sighed. "What do you think Luffy-chin?"

Luffy looked at the girl and shrugged a bit. "Don't like Sanji." Luffy said and the girls laughed knowing exactly why the girl didn't and exited the building.

The girls noticed the crowd at the gate and sighed at what a pain it would be to have to go through it to exit the grounds since all four of them were going to the warehouse together for their job. Nami had her mark one her chest since she already had another on her arm while Vivi put hers on her hand and Keimi on her ankle in a bracelet style design.

They managed to make it through the thick crowd even though there was mush protest from the girls and noticed what had caught all of their attention. Parked in the front of the school were Marco and his car. The blonde was leaning against it and trying his hardest to ignore the teenagers around him before glancing up and spotting them.

Ignoring the girls behind them, Luffy, Nami, Vivi and Keimi walked up to the man. Marco smiled a hello and Luffy gripped his sleeve and glanced at him questionably. "We got off early today so I decided to get you guys so you knew." The man said and the girls smiled a thanks.

"What are you doing with them?"

The four girls turned to Sanji who was coming out of the still squealing girls and was pointing at the blonde who raised an eyebrow at who the blonde was. "He's Sanji, the new it boy." Nami said and Marco nodded understanding. "His goal is to get every girl to fall for him."

"How far has he succeeded?" Marco asked and Nami smiled.

"We're the only ones he hasn't gotten yet." Nami said and a small chuckle escaped Marco's throat.

"What's wrong?" he asked Sanji and Sanji frowned while Zoro sighed and looked for an escape route.

"How dare you be acquainted with these lovely ladies like this." The man said and Marco raised an eyebrow before a smile came across his lips.

"So what would happen if I were to do this?" he asked as he wrapped his arms that Luffy had a grip on around the girl and brought him closer to him in a one armed hug.

"Release Luffy-chan!" the man ordered and Marco just watched him. "Luffy-chan, you can come into my arms." Sanji put his arms out and gestured for the girl to come to him.

Luffy got out of Marco's grip and the man watched as the girl made it over to Sanji though he didn't fail to notice her clenched fist. Luffy brought her fist up and contacted it with Sanji's face, sending the man backwards and skidded on the ground. The girls around stared at the girl who was now just standing there in shock and Zoro raised an eyebrow at the girl.

"You're annoying." Luffy said before turning around and gripping Marco's sleeve again as the man patted her head.

* * *

"You want to fight Luffy?" Nami asked as she looked up at Zoro at lunch the next day. Luffy was currently off in her own little world and wasn't paying attention to the conversation but Zoro nodded, trying his hardest to ignore the gossip behind him.

"I'm not sexist and I know a good fighter when I see one." Zoro said and Luffy glanced at him. "I want to see how strong she really is."

"Okay." Luffy said and her three friends glanced at Luffy who just shrugged. "After school today at the pier."

"Deal." Zoro said before walking away. "I'll just follow you."

"Luffy-san, are you sure about this?" Vivi asked and they huddled around the girl. "Zoro is a famous swordsman who has never lost in the tournaments."

"Tournaments?" Nami questioned and Vivi nodded.

"They're where fighter from all around come and fight against each other." The blue haired girl said but Luffy just shrugged.

"I learned from a gang." The girl said and Nami sighed understanding where Luffy was getting at.

"Luffy, street fighting is different from tournament fighting." The girl said and Luffy shrugged again.

"Street fighting means anything goes." Luffy said and Keimi agreed with the girl

"Hachan always said that street fighters are just as dangerous as tournament fighters." The girl said and Nami sighed knowing very well that it was a bad idea.

* * *

Okay short and everything I know but the fight with Zoro is going to take up a good portion of the next chapter, I think and I had the beginning played out in my head and I really wanted to type it up. Hope you liked.


	13. Fight of the Heir

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 13 Fight of the Heir

Nami sighed once again and also said that what was going on was a very bad idea but the thick crowd around her wanted the fight to go on. A circle had been made around Zoro and Luffy who faced each other and were ready to fight. Everybody from the warehouse was present as well as other people from other places. Keimi was cheering Luffy on like everybody from the Whitebeard gang and Vivi was watching politely.

"Get the fight started!" Thatch yelled and Nami glared at him.

"What exactly are the rules for a street fight?" Vivi asked and Thatch laughed.

"You girls are gonna have to watch to learn." The man said and the girls looked confused. "In a street fight, any weapon and any technique are allowed. You go until the opponent gives up or his unable to fight."

"Unable to fight as in unconscious?" Keimi asked.

"That or dead." Izou said looking at the girls who flinched.

"That all depends on who's your opponent." Vista said and Nami nodded understanding.

"But to know exactly how things work, we have to watch one?" Nami questioned and the man nodded. "This is going to be fun."

"It started." Marco said and the three girls turned to the ring in time to see Zoro rush at Luffy with three swords.

"Is that even physically possible?" Nami questioned as Luffy put her fists up.

The small girl leaned back as Zoro slashed at her before using her sandaled feet to block the swords and climbed up them. Luffy used the two swords in Zoro's hand as a footing and kicked the man in the face, sending him crashing to the ground. Luffy regained her balance and was ready to defend herself once more as Zoro quickly stood up and prepared for the next attack.

Sanji growled as he walked down the street to the boardwalk. He had heard from the girls in class that Zoro had challenged Luffy to a fight at the pier and that the girl agreed. The blonde was already pissed at the other for hugging the black haired girl and that the other three also seemed to be his acquaintances but his own brother fighting a girl was something he wouldn't tolerate.

"Damn Marimo if you so much as touch Luffy-chan, don't even think about coming home." Sanji muttered to himself as he walked down to the boardwalk.

Sanji noticed a crowd and went over to it to ask if they had seen Zoro when he noticed that they were around a fight. Sanji moved through the crowd a bit and his eyes widened in shock when he noticed that the ones who were fighting were Luffy-chan and Zoro.

"You're pretty good." Zoro said breathing heavily and looking at the girl who seemed to be slightly affected but not as much as him.

"Dammit Marimo I told you not to hit girls!"

Zoro quickly brought his sword up as his brother aimed a strong kick to his head. Luffy looked up at the disturbance and slight annoyance appeared on her face at realization that it was Sanji who had disturbed her fight. The crowd seemed shocked at the sudden arrival before watching as the man bowed to Luffy.

"Pardon my brother Luffy-chan, I will take care of him right away." Sanji said but when he opened his eyes, Luffy's fist contacted with the side of his face and he was sent to the ground as well.

Sanji looked up at the girl and watched Luffy's stare. It wasn't the same one he had been given that one day when they first met, but this one was still strong. "This is my fight." The girl said and Sanji stood up and dusted his pants off.

"Of course Luffy-chan but a small delicate little girl like you shouldn't have to fight against an asshole like my brother." The blonde said with a smile.

"Bad choice of words." Marco said and the girls stared in amazement as Luffy grabbed Sanji's collar and threw him over the crowd and into the water.

"Ah…" Vivi stared at the small girl and then at Marco who sighed.

"Three words never to describe Luffy with are small, delicate and little. She hates being looked down upon." Thatch said since he himself was a man of experience. "That blonde, we might need to bring him home if he doesn't need hospitalization."

"No, we are not doing that again." Marco said before calling to Luffy. "Let him go and just continue your fight with moss head."

Luffy looked at Marco and nodded before glancing at Zoro who had a tick mark on his forehead for being called moss head. "Continue." The girl said and Zoro rushed forward.

* * *

"Stupid cops showing up and ending our fun." Thatch said as he looked at the blonde teen who was glaring at his brother very intent on killing him. "Oi, why not just fight him? You staring at him is very annoying."

"SHUT UP! What the hell are Keimi-chan, Vivi-chan, Nami-swan and Luffy-chan doing here and with a bunch of gangsters!" the man asked putting his anger out on Thatch who really didn't want to deal with it.

"We're part of it." Nami said now wearing a shirt that revealed her mark which made Sanji's eye turn into a heart. Nami punched him as the man tried to touch her.

"Sanji-san, you are being very rude." Vivi said walking in and the blond noticed the mark on her hand and Keimi's on her ankle.

"Luffy-chan, you too?" the blonde asked and Luffy turned around revealing the one on her back which put the blonde into depression.

"Would you shut up, if you hadn't interrupted we could have finished our fight." Zoro said and Sanji got on him.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Sanji asked the man. "I thought I told you not to hit girls?"

"Women are the creatures that a man should protect and cherish." The man said. "Every inch of them."

Nami's foot contacted Sanji's face and the teen was sent through the wall. The gang looked at Nami who had a rather large tick mark on her forehead and Keimi laughed at the show. Luffy sat down and looked at Zoro who noticed her stare.

"We'll finish the fight at a later date when I don't have to deal with him." the green haired teen said pointing to the blonde who was acting like a servant to Nami.

"Okay." The girl said before giving her attention to Stefan who demanded it.

* * *

"Are you really going to fight him again?" Marco asked that night and Luffy nodded her head before lying it down on Marco's leg.

The man sighed and ran his hand through Luffy's hair as he read the book that he had gotten recently. It didn't take long for light snores to emit from the small girl and Marco smiled at Luffy before continuing with his reading.

Marco looked up from his book when he heard the sounds of footsteps outside his apartment door. It was impossible for it to be Thatch, even that man had sleeping hours and it was already pass midnight. Marco stood up and placed Luffy's head on the couch as the door bell rang and went to answer it, ready to attack in case it was needed.

The man opened the door and looked at the other who was positioned outside the door. Marco looked up at the man and even in the dark he could tell that the man was strong even if he was old. Marco narrowed his eyes as he questioned as to why an unknown man would be at his door this late.

"Can I help you?" Marco asked.

The man stared at Marco for a second before opening his mouth to speak. "My name is Monkey D. Garp, is this where Monkey D. Luffy is currently living?" he asked and Marco glanced at the couch before allowing the man in.

Marco walked over to the couch and gently shook Luffy's shoulder for the girl to wake up. Garp glanced at the girl who slightly woke up and looked at Marco in a questioning face that was still tired. Marco told him to sit in the chair and sat next to Luffy who still had not discovered the guest that they had two in the morning.

When Luffy did notice Garp, the girl instantly woke up and backed away, to the farthest reach of the couch and just stared at the man. Marco looked at the girl surprised noting that the last time he had seen the girl act like this was when glass at her school had been shattered. The sight of true terror in her eyes had made Marco eliminate that gang but this time it was different.

"Can I ask what your acquaintance with Luffy is?" Garp asked and Marco looked at the man who was not shocked by the girl's reaction towards him.

"I'm a friend of Ace's and decided to take care of her after his death. How did you find where I live and that she was with me?" Marco asked and Garp answered immediately.

"I asked the school that I heard that she was attending after Luffy and her brother ran away." Garp said and Marco glanced at Luffy who was still staring at the man in fear, he decided to get the look out of the girl's eyes.

"Luffy, why don't you head to bed, I need to talk to this man for a little while okay?" Marco offered and Luffy looked at him with a small nod and slowly got up and left the living room. Garp stared at the girl the whole time before bringing his attention back to Marco.

"How long has she been living under this roof with you?" Garp asked and Marco turned to him.

"For a few months now. You're her grandfather I presume." Marco said and Garp nodded.

"Since I am her legal guardian now that Ace is dead, it is my right to bring her back home." Garp said and Marco narrowed his eyes.

"It seems to me that Luffy and Ace didn't want to go back there and that there is a reason why they ran." Marco said remembering what had been said when the girl got Ace's will. "Why do I have a feeling that you care little about Ace's death?"

"That boy was bound to die with his recklessness, Luffy on the other hand just followed him around." Garp said but Marco never flinched at the words. "Tomorrow I will ask that you bring Luffy to the train station and I will take her home."

"What if she refuses to go?" Marco asked and Garp looked at him before smiling slightly.

"Ace's death shattered the girl, she has no ability to deny anything said to her." Garp said and Marco snapped.

"You are talking as if you planned Ace's death just so you could get Luffy back." The blonde said and Garp stared at him.

"I only need Luffy, once she marries the Stelly who is an heir form the Goa Kingdom that is near where Luffy should be living." The man said and Marco stood up.

"Luffy may have been broken after Ace's death but she is getting better and you will only cause her more pain." Marco said but Garp was unfazed.

"I don't care, as long as the status is secure. Luffy must be under my roof before she comes of age." Garp said and Marco narrowed his eyes once more.

Luffy was turning eighteen very shortly and when that happens she would be an adult and free. "I am not going to speak for Luffy but tomorrow is too soon." Marco said glancing slightly at the calendar that could be seen in the kitchen, he had to keep Luffy away for at least eight days.

"No, Luffy will come with me tomorrow, I don't care what you use as an excuse but if you keep it up I will take her now." Garp said and Marco was about to protest when the man spoke again. "Getting the police involved won't work Mr. First Commander of the Whitebeard Gang."

Marco flinched at the information and turned around to face Luffy who was standing in the hallway. Garp noticed the girl and looked at the girl who still showed signs of tiredness but courage and a bit of nervousness were also mixed in her eyes.

"Luffy…" Marco said and a smile grew on Garp's face.

"Ah, Luffy-chan it's me Grandpa! Come give him a hug." The man said kindly gesturing for the girl to run into his arms.

Luffy walked forward but he gripped Marco's arm and hid behind him slightly, staring at her grandfather nervously. "Wanna stay with Marco." The girl whispered and the man looked at the girl in disbelief.

"How dare you disobey your grandfather!" the man said and Luffy hid behind Marco completely. "What is Luffy to you!"

Marco was taken aback by the question and pondered how to answer the question. "Uh well um." Marco stuttered for her really had no clue how to answer the question.

"My Marco."

Marco froze and looked at Luffy who still gripped him and was looking down slightly as if she had been embarrassed to say those two words. Garp also stared in shock as well but was faster to recover and continued to yell at Marco.

"How dare you be that to Luffy! I will not allow it! Luffy is already engaged and you will not be in the way of it! This is war and I will fight back!" the man said before leaving the apartment and leaving Marco still pondering as to what happened.

"I don't know what happened but we got rid of him for now." Marco said glancing at the girl who still gripped him and smiled. "So, I'm yours?"

Luffy looked up and blushed slightly and Marco grinned a bit more before turning around so that he was facing her. Marco easily picked the girl up and put her into a carrying position where she was facing him. Luffy wrapped her arms around the man's neck and Marco lightly kissed her before walking in the direction of her room.

"Don't worry." He said as he said as he put her in her bed. "He won't take you away. Not ever."

* * *

Okay so the fight wasn't of it and I added in another twist with Garp. Also Stelly is Sabo' adoptive brother from his real parents back in Goa. I hope you guy's liked this.


	14. What Now?

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 14 What Now?

Marco looked at the sky as he let his chopsticks dangle in his mouth which was something that he never did. His friends looked at him and none knew what to say for this was the first time that Marco was like this. Thatch decided to break the awkward silence.

"So, uh what's up Marco?" he asked and Izou and Vista looked at the blonde who just shrugged.

"Luffy's grandfather is a storm." He said and the guys looked at him shocked. "He came over late last night and is demanding Luffy back."

"So he found her and wants to bring her back home? But what for?" Izou asked and Marco turned to them.

"Luffy is turning eighteen in a week. Apparently she's engaged to some rich guy and stuff but she doesn't want to marry him." Marco said and the three men looked at him. "I have feeling that that might be the reason that Ace ran away with her."

"Wait, your dating an engaged girl?" Thatch asked and Marco knocked him into the water.

"Luffy doesn't like him whoever this Stelly guy is and she wants to stay here." Marco said and the two men who remained on the bridge looked at Marco shocked.

"Marco do you know how match political power Stelly has?" Vista asked and Marco turned to him.

"You do remember that I don't give a crap about politics right?" Marco asked as Thatch climbed back onto the boardwalk.

"True but Stelly is said to hold enough Political Power to run the country." Izou said and Marco looked at the man.

"How the hell did Luffy get engaged to him?" Thatch asked and the man shrugged.

"What was Luffy's full name again?" Vista asked.

"Monkey D. Luffy." Marco said wondering how they couldn't remember that but Ace and Luffy had different surnames.

"T-That's the largest government industry in the country owner's surname." Thatch said and Marco looked at the man wondering how he knew that.

"To think that Luffy was the heir to that." Izou said and Marco shrugged.

"Luffy doesn't really care about it." Marco said and the men sighed knowing that it was true.

"Well you just have to keep Luffy away from her grandfather for a week right?" Thatch said wrapping an arm around Marco. "Just make sure that he doesn't get her."

"One get off because you're getting me wet and two, how?" Marco asked pushing Thatch off of him and looking at the other two men.

"Well just go on like normal." Izou said and Marco looked at the sky again. "As long as Luffy doesn't get caught she's fine."

"Though keeping her out of someone like Garp's reach is going to be hard so we need a backup plan." Vista said and the other two agreed while Marco began to think.

"I know, if you can't keep her safe from them then do something that will prevent them from being able to take her away." Thatch said and Marco looked at him confused.

"Ask her to marry you." Thatch said seriously and Marco froze.

"W-what the hell!" Marco asked taken back by what the man said.

"You like her so it is obvious so why not?" Thatch asked and Marco looked away.

"We've been going out for a month…" Marco argued.

"But you've liked her for over a year." Izou said.

"She also lives with you." Vista said.

"So why not?" Thatch smiled.

"IT'S TOO SUDDEN!" Marco said and the guys laughed before surrounding the younger man.

"Let us give you some advice." Vista said and Marco really didn't want to hear it. "When you have a girl that you want, get her."

"Coming from you that sounds lewd." Marco said and Vista laughed.

"You could always get Luffy pregnant." Thatch suggested and Marco punched him.

"STOP WITH THE LEWD IDEAS!" he yelled at the men who started to laugh.

* * *

"Something wrong Marco?" Luffy asked as she watched the man who was eating across from her and Marco looked up at Luffy and smiled.

"No it's fine, I just have to make sure to bring duct tape to work tomorrow." Marco said and Luffy looked at him curiously.

"Thatch say something?" Luffy asked and Marco looked at the girl curious as to how she knew. "Ace did the same thing."

"Oh yeah he did." Marco said with a small chuckle before looking at the girl who swallowed the piece of meat whole. "Oi oi didn't Ace tell you not to do that?"

"It's fine." Luffy said but she slightly choked and Marco sighed as he stood up and patted her on the back.

"See didn't I tell you?" he said with a sigh and Luffy pouted slightly.

Marco chuckled before risking swiping some of the girl's food. Luffy looked at Marco shocked before grabbing his rice bowl and downing it. Marco looked at the girl who began to try and lick the rice off of her face with her tongue but failed to get some of it.

Marco grabbed Luffy's face and carefully licked a piece of rice off of her cheek before helping her clean off the rest with a napkin. He smiled at the blush that remained on the girl's face throughout the whole event and watched as the girl began to twirl who her hair.

"What's wrong?" Marco asked and Luffy looked away.

"Hairs getting long." Luffy said getting off topic and Marco chuckled before finishing the dishes.

"I think you look cute with it like this." The blonde said grabbing a lock of the shoulder length black stuff.

"Hm…" Luffy looked at her feet and Marco smiled before lightly kissing her forehead.

* * *

I'M SORRY THAT THIS IS SO SHORT! I got to the last part and couldn't think of anything else so I left it the way it was. I hope that it is good enough... I see a butterfly~


	15. Run Away

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 15 Run Away

Nami, Vivi, and Keimi stared at their friend who was calmly eating before glancing at Zoro who shrugged. They had just been told the whole story and to say that they were shocked was an understatement. Nami kept watching Luffy carefully, wanting answers while Keimi and Vivi seemed to be thinking about something.

"Luffy-san, how long have you been engaged to Stelly?" Vivi asked and Luffy looked at her before beginning to think.

"About two years." Luffy said and the three girls looked at Luffy shocked.

"Seriously though, aren't you and that blonde dude dating or something?" Zoro asked and Luffy nodded before the man sighed. "What are you going to do about it?"

"Going to ignore him." Luffy said and Zoro raised an eyebrow at the girl. "I just have to be eighteen."

"How long until that?" Nami asked and Luffy looked at the calendar that was on the board of their homeroom class.

"Five days." Luffy said and the three girls smiled.

"Alright, all we have to do is keep you out of reach of your grandfather for five more days." Nami said and Luffy glanced out the window.

"He's already here." She said pointing to a large shiny black car that was parked out front of the school.

"That's an expensive car." Keimi said and Luffy sighed.

"Not really, that is the cheapest we have." The girl said and Nami turned to her. "Gee-chan probably didn't want to stand out too much."

"THAT'S NOT STANDING OUT!" Nami asked as a man clad in a white suit along with a blue tie stepped out and began to walk to the school.

"He's coming this way." Zoro said and the three girls stood up.

"Let's go to the roof." Nami said grabbing Luffy's arm as she dragged the girl with her.

* * *

"Is the student Monkey D. Luffy currently here?" Garp asked the receptionist and Makino nodded her head, recognizing the man instantly.

"It is break so they are all eating." She said as she went through a few files. "They might be in their classroom but if not I'm sure that Nico-sensei will allow you to stay until she gets there."

"Thank you." Garp said looking at the class number and walking off into the direction of the room.

* * *

"You know I've kinda been thinking about it for a while." Vivi said as they entered the roof of the school which was surprisingly vacant even though it was pretty much May. "Luffy-san isn't Marco-san eight years older than you?"

"Yeah, why?" Luffy asked and Vivi began to think.

"Isn't it illegal for an adult to be going out with a girl who is more than two years younger than him?" Vivi asked and Nami looked at her before racking her brain.

"It is but technically Luffy is going to be an adult soon so it's not like it matters that much." the red head said and she sat on the ground.

"I've been thinking about it for a while, but how did you and your brother escape you grandfather Luffy-chin?" Keimi asked and Luffy looked at them before glancing at the sky.

_*Flashback*_

_"Ace-nii can I sleep with you?"_

_A seventeen year old Ace looked up at a fourteen year old Luffy who peeked into his room with a large grin. Ace smiled and the girl bounded into the large room and jumped onto the bed. Ace laughed as Luffy jumped on him and hugged his waist as he placed his book down. Luffy smiled happily as Ace ran his hand through her hair and pulled the night shirt that Luffy was wearing down._

_Luffy placed her head against Ace's bear chest and smiled again as she closed her eyes. She loved sleeping with Ace even though their grandfather was against it completely but they didn't care. Ace covered them with the blanket and lay down as Luffy used him as a pillow._

_"Aren't you getting too old to sleep with me?" Ace asked and Luffy looked at him with a pout._

_"No." the girl said and Ace laughed as he turned off the lights and the two of them fell asleep.

* * *

_

_"How many times must I tell you two not to sleep with each other?" a grey haired man asked and Luffy and Ace glanced at each other._

_"I don't know, how long till you let us out of here?" Ace asked and Garp glared at the teen while Luffy laughed at her brother's words._

_"Don't go using that tone with me boy." Garp said and Ace stuck his tongue out which made Garp angrier. _

_"I don't care what you say gee gee, but I'm getting out of here someday and you know that there is nothing that you can do about it." Ace said and Garp sighed before dismissing them and the two bounded out of the office.

* * *

_

_"Hey Luffy want to take a bath?" Ace asked his sister and the girl looked up from her manga and smiled happily before jumping up and glomping her brother who laughed. "I take that as a yes."

* * *

_

_Luffy laughed as Ace attempted to wash her hair as they sat together in the large bath tub that was in their 'fit twenty people' bathroom. They had been able to sneak pass the maids and were able to lock the door so that they could bathe together. Ace never got why their gramps was so against him and Luffy doing things like sleep in the same bed or take baths together. They were siblings for god's sake even if he preferred his mother's surname. _

_Ace laughed as Luffy began to blow bubbles from the bunch that was in her hands and the girl turned to her brother and smiled. Ace smiled at the girl and continued to wash her untamable black hair though the girl herself was just as untamable. Ace glanced at his sister who brought her hands to her small chest which was just beginning to develop._

_"What's wrong?" Ace asked and Luffy puffed her cheeks out._

_"They aren't going to get any bigger right?" She asked and Ace sighed not knowing what to say._

_"Well I don't know they probably will since you're still pretty small." Ace said and Luffy looked at him shocked._

_"NO I DON'T WANT THEM TO!" the girl yelled and Ace laughed._

_The man decided to tease his sister a bit and stopped washing her hair and grabbed her small chest which scared Luffy. The girl rammed her elbow into Ace's gut on accident and turned around to her brother. Ace looked at his sister who was staring at him apologetically and smiled._

_"I need to stop teaching you how to hit so hard." He said and Luffy began to laugh.

* * *

_

_"Dammit you two, not only did you sleep in the same bed last night but you even had the nerve to bathe together." Garp said and Luffy laughed at her grandfather's face while Ace smirked._

_"What's wrong with that, we're siblings." Ace reminded the man and Garp frowned before glancing at Luffy who was distracted by the shiny chandelier on the ceiling._

_"I will deal with this later but now I have news for Luffy." Garp said putting a picture of an ugly flat nosed boy up. "His name is Stelly he will be your new husband Luffy."_

_"No." Luffy said simply and Ace narrowed his eyes at the picture._

_"You have no say in the matter Luffy for the engagement has already been decided." Garp said and Ace got on the man._

_"Oi gee gee you can't just decide on this sort of thing, besides, Luffy is barely fifteen." Ace said but the grey haired man ignored it and waved them out._

_"You are going to prepare for this." Garp told his granddaughter who looked at him before leaving with her brother.

* * *

_

_"I don't want to marry that guy." Luffy said and Ace looked at the girl with a smile._

_"Don't worry about it Lu." Ace said messing up her hair. "We're going to be ditching this place."_

_"Really?" Luffy asked and Ace smiled as he opened up a trunk and began to pack things into them._

_"I'm eighteen now so I can leave and take you with me as well." Ace said and Luffy smiled as she went to her room and grabbed things as well._

_That night the two siblings snuck out of the large mansion that they lived in and snuck pass the guards and dogs. Luffy kept up easily as the two finally left the grounds that their grandfather owned and went to the city where they were going to be living for then on out._

_*End*_

Zoro looked at the girl who smiled at the remembrance of her brother and he watched her face as she thought back to the time that they had been together. The green haired man sighed as the sound of the bell and they knew that they had to go back to class. Luffy looked in the direction of the gate and then at her friends.

"Your grandfather is probably waiting for us in the classroom." Zoro said and the other girls agreed. "Think we can get pass him without him noticing us?"

"You mean ditch the rest of class?" Vivi asked and Zoro nodded. "Where would we go?"

"How about to the warehouse." Keimi offered and they agreed as Luffy stood up and glanced at the sky around her.

"I'm not going back there." Luffy said and her friends smiled up at her. "I'm staying here." 

* * *

okay i hope you guys liked this and it took forever to write because i got dared to write it without looking at the keyboard. I can do it but it takes me sometime but i can do it. i hope the bath scene with Ace and Luffy wasn't too disturbing but it really isn't AceLu. i hope you liked^^


	16. Adult But Still A Kid

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 16 Adult But Still A Kid

Marco walked through the warehouse and made sure that everything was in check before he went off to the pier to eat with Thatch and the guys. He walked through the empty place and looked at the stacked boxes and the conveyer belts which were on pause for the whole place was supposed to be on lunch break. Marco however had to make sure that nothing was accidently left running and would walk through the whole building and made sure that all was good while Stefan would follow.

Marco looked around one section and turned to leave for the pier when he noticed that Stefan was climbing up the poles that led to a high window. Marco sighed as he watched the dog to make sure that he didn't fall from the height he was at. Marco remembered when Luffy would sneak in through the same way when she had ditched school or was running away from another gang.

Marco exited his memories and watched as the girl he had just been thinking of climbed through the window and easily jumped down. Luffy looked up and Marco noticed Nami, followed by Keimi and Vivi climb in as well. Zoro came last but was the first of the four to jump down next to Luffy. Nami yelled at him and Zoro looked away; none of them noticing Marco as of yet.

Vivi and Nami climbed down easily and Keimi was about to when Stefan jumped in front of her and made her lose her balance. The green haired girl fell and Zoro quickly dashed forward and caught the girl who wrapped her arms around him. Keimi looked at Zoro and smiled a thank you before the man put her down and looked at the dog that had caused her to fall. Luffy patted Stefan on the head before turning to Marco who she had just then noticed.

Luffy trotted up to Marco and stood in front of him and the blonde simply messed with her hair. The others walked up to the two and greeted him before Marco questioned. "Okay, what did you guys do this time?" he asked and Nami giggled but this time Luffy answered.

"Gee Gee appeared at school." The girl said and Marco looked at her before getting them to follow him.

Thatch and Izou were surprised to see the five teens walk out onto the pier but their faces showed that whatever happened was fine. Zoro sat a little farther off but was brought back into the conversation that they were having by Keimi while Luffy sat next to Marco.

"We ended up having to climb down the side of the school building." Nami said and Thatch laughed as he tried to imagine what that was like for the girls.

"I wouldn't have minded being the first one down." The man said and Nami instantly knocked him into the water.

"Zoro-san was nice enough to go last." Vivi said and the man simply but his head in his hand.

"Yeah yeah but I'm going to make that blonde idiot jealous if he learns that I came here." Zoro said before imagining how much he could rub it into Sanji's face that he was with a group of girls.

"So this is your little harem?" Izou asked and Zoro looked at the cross dresser before shrugging.

"Zoro-chin is really strong though." Keimi said with a large smile. "He caught me easily when I fell and Thatch-chin hasn't come back up yet."

"I hit him in the crotch." Nami said and Marco sighed but didn't want to go into the water to get him.

"I'll get him." Keimi said taking off her shoes and jumping into the ocean.

"Is she going to be okay in the ocean?" Marco asked as the girl disappeared.

"Don't worry about Keimi." Nami said and the man looked at her. "She may not look like it, but Keimi is the top swimmer at our school and has never once lost in a swimming race."

"Eh, that's amazing." Izou said and Luffy looked at the water and watched as Keimi came up with an unconscious Thatch.

"It's terrible!" the girl said and the group went to the edge and noticed that Thatch had been pressed against Keimi's chest. "He's bleeding terribly from his nose."

"Just get the idiot on the deck and he'll be fine in a little while." Marco said grabbing Thatch's collar and very easily throwing him on the deck.

"Is he really going to be fine Marco-chin?" Keimi asked and Marco looked at Thatch and shrugged.

"If he dies now he'll die happy." Marco said and Nami started to laugh and Luffy slightly smiled.

* * *

Luffy tossed and turned in her sleep as she thought back to that day, the day that she and Ace and gone back to their parents' graves. It was because they had decided to visit that they had to go back to that place. It was only right that they visited even though they had run away years earlier. To say that their grandfather wasn't expecting to see them was an understatement.

Luffy opened her eyes and stared at her ceiling and sighed as she thought back to what was going to happen if she was caught by her grandfather now. It was probably all thanks to their trip to their parents' graves that caused gee gee to find her so quickly. She wished that they had never gone to the sacred grounds that held the ones who she loved even if that was the reason she had gone to see them.

Luffy sat up and looked at her door which was open just a crack but enough to show the room that belonged to Marco. Luffy stood up and grabbed Ace's pillow before walking to the door and opening it and walking towards Marco's room. Luffy sucked in a breath and carefully opened the door and peaked in; Marco was sitting on his bed and reading.

The man looked up at Luffy and smiled at the girl who hid half of her face in her pillow sheepishly. "What's wrong?" Marco asked and Luffy walked in before closing the door. Marco raised his eyebrows as the girl walked up to his bed and he noted a small blush that was on her feet.

"Can I sleep with Marco?" Luffy asked and Marco felt heat rise in his cheeks but he quickly let it go before scooting over and allowing room for the girl to climb onto the bed.

Luffy put her pillow on the bed next to Marco's and crawled under the covers before popping out and looking at Marco who smiled at her. Marco ran his hand through Luffy's hair and the girl closed her eyes slightly and waited for Marco to speak for she knew he would.

"Is something bothering you?" Marco asked and Luffy shook her head.

"Can't sleep that's all." Luffy said and Marco sighed before lying down next to the girl.

"Okay, but try." Marco said bringing the girl's head to his chest. "Tomorrow you turn eighteen."

"Hm, I'll be an adult." Luffy mumbled as she took in Marco scent.

"You may be the right age but you're still a little kid." Marco said and Luffy tiredly looked at him with an angry pout.

"I'm not a kid." Luffy said tiredly and Marco smiled at her before beginning to slowly stroke her back.

"You're too small to not be a kid." Marco said and Luffy booed him but finally fell asleep.

Marco looked at the sleeping girl and smiled before he realized that he was sleeping with the girl. The blonde sighed before covering both of them with the blanket that they had and finally going to sleep as well for he had a bad feeling about the next day.

* * *

Marco's intuition was dead on for the next morning the two of them were woken up by someone slamming into his apartment. Marco told Luffy to stay in his room and walked into the kitchen to be faced with Garp and a few police officers who had guns and were all pointing at him. Garp looked at Marco and grinned before pointing an accusing finger at the blonde.

"That's the one." He said and Marco looked confused. "That's the one who kidnapped my granddaughter."

* * *

Ah here it is and I left with a cliff hanger and I have a feeling that i should maybe hiding right now. *now hiding behind whatever i found* You guys don't hate me if you figured out what was coming next right? RIGHT? Okay i'm not going to say anymore but i hope you guy's liked this and the fluffiness that was in it.


	17. Birthday Surprise

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 17 Birthday Surprise

Marco stared at the cops and then at Garp who continued to smile the same victorious grin. Marco cringed slightly at realization of the situation he was in before straightening up as the head officer came closer to him. The man had silver hair that was windblown back and held two cigars in his clenched teeth.

"I am Smoker, we received a report that you have a kidnapped girl and we wish for you to cooperate." The man said and Marco nodded. "Please show us the girl."

Marco didn't talk but turned around and began to walk towards his room where he had told Luffy to wait. Smoker followed but ordered his men to stay in the living room and to touch nothing. The man watched as Marco easily opened the door and showed the unlit room. Smoker saw the figure that was on the bed and Marco sighed as he noticed that Luffy had fallen asleep once more.

Smoker raised an eyebrow at how the girl looked perfectly fine and was almost in a blissful sleep before watching Marco walk over to her. The blonde gently shook the sleeping girl's shoulder and the black haired girl groggily woke up and stared at the man.

"What's wrong Marco?" the girl asked and Marco smiled before standing up and showing Luffy the officer. "Who are you?"

"Are you Monkey D. Luffy?" Smoker asked and the girl nodded. "I am Smoker, an officer for the City of Grandline. I got a report that you were kidnapped by this man from your grandfather."

Luffy flinched slightly at the saying that her grandfather had asked for her and Smoker didn't fail to catch it. "However, from what I can see you are staying here of your own free will." Smoker began and Luffy and Marco loosened a bit. "I would like you to come with me real quick and we can settle this."

Luffy stood up and gripped Marco arm as the two of them followed Smoker out to the living room where Garp was waiting. The man smiled when he saw his granddaughter but scorned when he noticed that her grip was on Marco arm. The man looked at Smoker questioning why he didn't just take the girl away from the blonde.

"Okay you," Smoker began pointing at Garp. "Claim that the guy kidnapped your granddaughter but from what I can see and I think it is kinda evident right now, the girl is living here of her own free will."

"You cannot make assumptions like that!" Garp said angrily. "That is for the judge to decide."

"I make the rules here." Smoker said glaring at the man who was unfazed. "I can also tell that the girl doesn't wish to go with you."

"What makes you say that?" Garp asked. "Luffy-chan, come to your loving grandfather."

The black haired girl hid behind Marco who was now getting a death glare from Garp. "I think that that is enough evidence." Smoker said before turning towards Garp. "State why you filed a false kidnapping charge."

"I didn't file a false nothing." Garp said angrily. "My granddaughter and her brother ran away and I only have the right to get her back. This man however is preventing Luffy from coming back with me."

"If they ran away, doesn't that mean that they never wanted to be with you in the first place?" Smoker asked and Garp's face turned red. "Monkey D. Luffy, how old are you?"

"Eighteen." Luffy said quietly and Smoker nodded.

"Since she is an official adult, she has the right to stay where she wish." Smoker said and Garp glared at the girl.

"Luffy is still seventeen, her birthday is on the…" Garp began.

"Fifth." Marco finished before revealing that that day was indeed the fifth of May.

"I still have the right to take her home for she has a man to marry." Garp said and Smoker narrowed his eyes. "Luffy is already engaged and has been for two years now; you have no right to keep her away from her fiancé."

"You're engaged?" Smoker asked and Luffy looked down.

"I don't want to marry him." the girl said and Smoker crossed his arms in front of him. "Ace-nii ran away with me so that I didn't have to."

"So your brother was trying to help you out." Smoker said figuring everything out before turning to Garp. "I could very easily arrest you for this."

"There is nothing to arrest me for, this is an arranged marriage." Garp said angrily but Smoker put his hand up to prevent him from continuing.

"You are forcing her to marry this man for your own gain which is no different than selling her body for a few beris." Smoker said and Marco was glad that the man wasn't bitching at them. "Also no ring was presented to the girl and she is not wearing it meaning that she is technically not engaged."

"Stelly had no time to give her their engagement ring. Besides, he is quite fond of my Luffy which is only reasonable." Garp said but Smoker sighed.

"He keeps making up good excuses." Smoker said with a sigh. "I'm going by my gut but either one of you is free to make a trial for this."

Marco and Garp stared at each other while Luffy kept her face in Marco's back as the stare down was brought upon each other. "Monkey D. Luffy being an adult is allowed to choose where she wishes to be as well as that even before she was a legal adult she was living here of her own free will thus stating that she can choose to go with her grandfather or stay with her boyfriend."

Garp's face went red before he grabbed the white jacket of Smoker's and glared at the man angrily. "WHO THE HELL GAVE YOU THE RIGHT TO DECIDE THAT SORT OF THING!" the man asked angrily. "I PAID YOU TO GET THAT CHILD BACK TO ME SO THAT MY FINANCIAL POSITION WILL BE SECURED!"

"And your true attentions are brought out." Smoker said easily and Garp flinched before leaving the apartment.

Smoker dusted off his jacket before turning to the other two in the room and waving his men out of the room. Marco stared at Smoker and Luffy peeped out from behind him with the fact that Garp was gone. Marco looked down at her and gently placed his hand on her shoulder and drawing her closer to him.

"I cannot be certain that he won't stay gone so be careful." Smoker said and Marco nodded.

"Thank you but why were you helping us?" Marco asked and Smoker glanced at Luffy.

"I wasn't, that was what I saw." The silver haired man said simply. "But I heard of what happened to these two. I also don't like people like Garp who try to get whatever they want with money."

The man left and Marco watched him go before turning back to Luffy who had grabbed his waist and was staring up at him. Marco smiled and easily picked the smaller girl up and carrying her to the kitchen. "You are way too small to be an adult." He said and Luffy pouted as she gripped him tightly.

* * *

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY LUFFY!"

The black haired girl stared at the group in front of her in shock but a small smile crept on her face as she stared at her friends. They each were smiling happily and holding confetti poppers and cups and other party things. Vivi and Keimi came up beside the girl and grabbed her arms and dragged her into the classroom.

Most of the students had already gone home but Nico-sensei, Zoro, Sanji, Nami, Vivi and Keimi had stayed after and planned this and just waited for Luffy to come back. All of them were laughing and Sanji brought out a large cake that they all noticed that Luffy was eyeing carefully. The girl thanked Sanji before eating the first bite and a blissful look came to the girl's face.

"Ah, Luffy-chan your face is all the happiness I need, now here, birthday kiss." The blonde said getting closer to the girl.

He was suddenly picked up by his color and tossed over a few desks where he landed in a heavy heap. The group smiled at Marco who walked in and sat next to Luffy before placing the girl in his lap. Thatch, Izou and Vista followed the man in and smiled at the girls and Zoro.

"I think I'm the one who should give her that." Marco said grabbing Luffy's chin and giving her the birthday kiss that Sanji had planned on giving the girl.

"Okay, we all get it but quite making out with her." Nami said and Marco smiled at her while red covered Luffy's face. "You can give her birthday sex later."

Marco grabbed a piece of cake and threw it at the girl who flinched at the stuff hitting her but smiled a deadly smile and threw a piece back. "Nami-san, Marco-san please don't." Vivi said trying to stop what she knew was about to happen.

"Food fight." Luffy said simply and Thatch grinned.

"The birthday princess wishes it to happen so shall it happen." The man said grabbing a piece of the cake and aiming it at the green haired man who had fallen asleep.

Marco sighed but Luffy had gotten up and was affectively nailing her friends in the face with the sweet cake. A smile was on her face and he decided to allow it to happen for Luffy was enjoying herself though he couldn't sit and watch for Nico Robin had decided to take aim at him.

Sanji finally woke up and saw what was happening and decided to join in and he decided to nail Marco because he somehow knew that the man had gotten Nami. The fight continued until Nico-sensei said that it was time to clean the classroom up and pretty much everyone booed her but got to it. Luffy began to lick her arm clean of the cake and frosting and Marco laughed.

He didn't have as much on him as everyone else because he was able to dodge most of the pieces thrown but Luffy had pretty much went out in the front line and thrown at whoever she could find. She had gotten him once and that had been a sneak attack though he wasn't angry at her though he got her in the face for it later on. Luffy began to lick her arms clean and Marco started helping her with her face.

"You are going to have to take a bath tonight." He said and Luffy looked up at him and smiled.

The girl reached up to Marco's face and took a piece of cake off of the corner of his mouth and ate it. Marco's face turned slightly red and he quickly looked away before glancing at Sanji who was glaring at him. Marco grinned evilly, loving to get the teen fired up and affectively licked some frosting off of Luffy's cheek. The girl squealed at the touch and pushed Marco away slightly though all the man did was laugh.

"Like I said." Nami began and Marco looked at her with his normal expression. "Have birthday sex at home."

Luffy looked at her and blushed for she hadn't been paying attention the first time that Nami had said it. Nami noticed the look and a smile crept on her face and she ran over to Marco and pulled him away from Luffy. The girl forced Marco to bend down and began to whisper into his ear and Thatch as well as Robin went closer to hear what she was telling the blonde.

"LIKE HELL!" Marco said and Nami laughed evilly before turning to the man and smiled.

"You are so going to do it to her one day." The red head said before grabbing her stuff and exiting the room.

"Damn girl." Marco said before taking Luffy's hand and exiting the room as well.

* * *

Woot, okay that wasn't what i had planned at first but still it should be fine. I hope you guys liked and yes it will keep going on I think for i have no clue how this one is going to end if ever. I had fun with the whole part at the end, I love food fights and Nami has a really dirty mind.


	18. Birthday Continues

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 18 Birthday Continues

Marco sighed as he sat in the living room of his apartment and while Luffy took a shower. He had gotten most of the icing off of him, only a bit was left in his hair that he would need a shower to get it all out. The noise of the shower came to his ears and Marco brought his attention o the problem he had.

Garp was not going to let Luffy got that easily, especially now that they had pretty much challenged him when that officer came during the morning. Marco exited his thoughts when he heard Luffy exit the bathroom. Marco looked towards the hall and saw the girl; he froze when he saw that she was very loosely wearing her towel.

The blonde instantly looked away and waited for the sound of the girl's room door closing. Marco finally calmed himself down and reduced the blush on his face. It was absolutely nothing that should have affected him for it wasn't the first time he had seen Luffy like that.

_*flashback* _

_Marco had decided to stay at Ace's house after the man had invited him over. Luffy had been home alone and Ace wanted to get home as soon as possible for he had no clue what Luffy was going to get in to. The two entered the apartment that the siblings shared and instantly were attacked, well, Ace was._

_Marco stared at the man that had been knocked over and saw what had done so. Luffy was sitting on Ace's stomach with a small towel wrapped around her body. Her hair was wet indicating that she had bathed recently._

_"Ace, where's my clothes?" the girl asked and Ace looked at her before sitting up._

_"I told you that they are in the dryer." Ace said and Luffy laughed before standing up and running towards the room._

_She didn't make it far however for as soon as she stood up, the towel Luffy was wearing fell off and revealed her naked body. Luffy looked down and Ace slammed Marco's head into a wall in a second._

_"Oops." The girl said laughing slightly and Ace shoed her away._

_*end*_

Marco stood up and walked to the girl's room for it had been a few minutes since she went in. the blonde knocked on the door but no response came so he opened the door. The man looked in the room and saw Luffy on the floor fast asleep. The man smiled but sighed as he walked in and picked up the girl.

Marco hadn't realized that the girl hadn't gotten dressed and when he picked her up, the girl's towel fell off. The girl had put on pants but no shirt and Marco found himself staring at her chest. Marco instantly looked away when he realized that he had been staring but Luffy began to cuddle against him.

"Warm…" the girl said as she leaned into the man.

A large blush covered the blonde's face and he walked to the bed to put her down. Right before he placed her on the bed, the black haired girl gripped Marco's shirt and refused to let go. Marco froze and sighed before sitting down and got Luffy on his lap. The girl was pressed against him so he didn't see her chest, but the man could feel it.

Marco looked at the sleeping girl's face and smiled at the childish girl. "You are really something." He muttered before carefully talking his shirt off and placing the girl on the bed. He made sure that the purple shirt covered the girl completely and then covered her with a blanket. He watched her face for a few minutes before bending down and kissing the girl's forehead.

"Happy birthday." Marco said before standing up and leaving. Marco walked down the hall and looked at the bathroom before going in and taking a shower.

* * *

"Good morning." Marco looked up at Luffy and smiled at the girl who came and sat next to him.

The girl looked at the food and carefully picked up her fork and began to eat. Marco watched the girl and smiled as he saw that she was eating almost at the speed that she usually did.

"You're eating better." The man said and Luffy looked at him confused. "Well you're eating faster."

"Oh I didn't notice it at all." Luffy said and Marco sighed.

* * *

"Want to go somewhere?"

Luffy looked at Nami and the red head smiled with Keimi and Vivi behind her. The girl sat next to the girl and wrapped her arm around the girl's shoulder.

"Why don't we all got the karaoke, just us girls." The girl said and Luffy smiled.

"Okay." Luffy said before pulling out a cell phone and texting someone.

"When did you get that?" Vivi asked the girl.

"Thatch gave it to me for my birthday." Luffy said and Nami looked at the iTouch. "He said yes."

"Yosh, let's go then!" Nami said and the four girls cheered.

* * *

"This place is really big." Keimi said and they stared up at the large building.

"Wasn't this supposed to be girls only?" Nami asked. "WHY ARE YOU TWO HERE!"

The four girls looked at Zoro and Sanji who was either bored or smiling happily. The blonde teen had heard the four teen girls talk about the karaoke and decided to go with her. Zoro had decided to tag along to keep his brother out of trouble. Keimi seemed happy that the green haired teen was tagging along.

"Okay, we're going to allow you to join but be gentlemen and pay of the cost." Nami said.

"What! Witch…" Zoro said and Sanji kicked him in the head.

"How dare you talk to Nami-swan like that!" Sanji yelled and Zoro glared at him.

"What was that ero-cook?" the man asked this starting the fight that both Luffy and Keimi happily watched.

"A room for six." Nami told the man at the counter, completely ignoring the fight. "Those two idiotic boys will be paying."

* * *

"Ah that was fun!" Nami said somewhat drunk from the alcohol that she had been able to get out of the attendant.

Luffy smiled more form being slightly drunk herself before looking at the sky. She had had a lot of fun that night and she had been with her friends. She looked at Sanji who was helping Nami and Zoro who was helping Keimi. Vivi had been the only one who had denied drinking and she was making sure that Luffy wasn't going to walk off onto the road.

"That was a lot of fun Zoro-nii." Keimi said and Zoro sighed.

The small group stopped when they saw a car pull up in front of them and Marco came out. The blonde looked at the group and noticed how most of them had a drunken blush on their faces. He sighed and gestured for them to get into the car and happily did.

"I figured that you might get a hold of alcohol." The man said and Nami laughed.

"Ma ma, well we didn't get kicked out." the girl said smiling.

* * *

Marco dropped each of them off before driving him and Luffy home. The girl had stayed silent the whole entire ride and Marco thought that she might have fallen asleep. He glanced at her when he had stopped at the apartment and the girl looked at him and smiled.

"I had fun." The girl said and Marco smiled, glad that she was enjoying life.

"I'm glad but you shouldn't have drunken alcohol." He said as he helped the girl into the house.

"But it was good." The girl said as Marco put her on the couch. The man sat next to her and sighed as he ran a hand through her hair.

Marco glanced at the girl and backed up a bit as Luffy began to lean towards him. The girl wrapped her arms around the man and moved herself into the man's lap. Marco stared at her not sure as to whether the girl was just going to sleep or not.

"Marco?" the girl asked.

"Yeah?" Marco answered glancing slightly away.

"Does Marco love me?" the black haired teen asked.

"Marco stared at the girl in shock but that changed as the girl came face to face with him. The blonde tried his hardest not to blurt out something stupid as he placed his hands on her back. The girl's brown eyes stared at Marco in earnest as to what his answer was going to be.

"Yes." Marco said sitting up straight and looking at the girl carefully. "Right now, I love you more than anybody else in the world."

"I love you too." The girl said snuggling into the crook of Marco's neck.

Marco smiled and wrapped his arms around the girl a little tighter, and enveloped the girl in a hug. Light snores came from Luffy and Marco carefully grabbed a blanket that was on the floor and covered the two of them with it. The blonde closed his eyes, and let sleep take him over.

* * *

Ah that was interesting to do mostly because I did this all on my phone once again yesterday at my cousin's house before dinner. I was in the emo corner the whole time and the only comments i got were how tall i was compared to the last time people saw me. wasn't all that fun except when the food came out hope you like this and I don't really know


	19. Cold and Stelly

Phoenix's Light

Chapter 19 Cold and Stelly

"I knew I should have put you back in your bed last night." Marco said as he looked at the thermometer in his hand. "Geez, you got a pretty high fever too."

Marco had woken up that morning and found Luffy still asleep on him but realized that she had gotten a cold over night. The man had brought her to her room and was checking her temperature. The girl was breathing heavily and sweating and the fever didn't seem like it had any intention of breaking whatsoever.

The blonde looked at the girl and ran a hand through her damp hair, moving it off of her forehead. The man stood up and walked to the kitchen, hoping to find some cold medicine for the girl to break the fever. However Marco had never needed such things and as to be expected, he had none. The man sighed and flipped open his phone knowing that he was going to get laughed at for what he was about to do but knowing that there was no other way.

"AHAHAHAHAHAH! You totally fail Marco." Thatch said as he handed the bag to Marco who was clearly trying to die down his anger.

"Yeah yeah and thanks." Marco said going through the bag and making sure that the idiot got the right medicine.

"How is the princess anyway?" Thatch asked and Marco sighed.

"Obviously still has a fever since I didn't have any medicine." Marco said and Thatch nodded understanding what the man meant.

"I know that, I mean how high is the fever?" the man asked and Marco looked at him.

"It's just a cold but still pretty high so I'm staying home for a few days." The blonde said and Thatch nodded before leaving.

Marco entered Luffy's room and found the girl sitting up and staring at the man with dazed fevered eyes that seemed to stare pass him. Marco sighed and closed the door before walking over to the girl and sitting next to her once again. Luffy turned her attention to him and Marco smiled before carefully placing his hand on her forehead indicating that she still had a fever.

"Lay back down." The man said as he fished out the medicine, "After you swallow this."

The girl looked at the medicine and Marco good see the displeasure on her face for Luffy was never good at taking medicine. Marco sighed and handed her the pill and the cup of water that he had placed on the table next to her bed. Luffy looked at the large red pill before quickly swallowing it dry and taking a gulp of water. Marco smiled and helped her lay back down before gently kissing her fevered forehead and leaving the room.

"Try to get more sleep and I'll check up on you later." He said before turning off the lights and praying that Luffy got better.

* * *

Two days passed and Luffy got over her cold and was back to the way she was before she had gotten cold. Her friends were glad to see her again and so were the men at the warehouse along with Stefan. The dog tackled Luffy like usual but this time he stuck by her side like glue and almost wouldn't let her and Marco go home.

"Man that dog gets attached to people." Marco said as he sat down on the couch with Luffy next to him.

"That's Stefan for you." Luffy said claiming the remote and Marco smiled before grabbing Luffy and placing her on his lap.

Luffy looked up at the man who smiled down at her and got the remote out of her hand before changing the channels himself. Luffy booed but allowed him to do so and they ended up watching a horror movie that was on though it was out of season.

"Man this is cheesy." Marco sighed and Luffy agreed.

Marco looked at her and Luffy, feeling his gaze, looked up at him. Marco smiled and bent down to kiss the girl, pushing her against the couch and holding her there. Luffy wasn't fighting him so Marco let his tongue slip out of his mouth and into hers, almost glad when the girl allowed him to enter.

He ran his tongue over her teeth and let it slide onto her tongue which had been staying in place. When his tongue touched hers, Luffy released a moaning sound that made Marco begin to play with her a bit. Marco tried to dominate her mouth but Luffy wasn't going down without a fight though in the end Marco won.

The man explored her mouth a bit more before deciding to remove his tongue and released the girl from the lip lock. Luffy looked up at him and a blush covered her face but that just made Marco kiss her again. Luffy frowned and bit his cheek making Marco jump back though Luffy smiled at the win.

"You little…" Marco was about to get payback when the door to his apartment slammed open and a man walked in.

Marco and Luffy stared at the somewhat short man who was just a bit taller than Luffy who had a flat nose and a bowl style haircut. The man looked at them and narrowed his eyes before Marco got off of Luffy and walked up to the man, towering over him but not intimidating the man who was confident in his own ability.

"Who are you?" Marco asked and the man seemed taken aback by the question presented to him.

"How dare a simple commoner such as yourself question who I the great Stelly is!" the man said trying to show off.

"I just asked who you were now leave." Marco said before gesturing to the still opened door.

"Trash shall not speak to me in such a way." Stelly said and a tick mark formed on Marco's head.

"How about go out before I throw you out?" Marco asked but the bowl head simply walked passed him and up to Luffy who was looking at him curiously.

"So this is my future wife." The man said and Marco flinched before finally recognizing the name that the man had said was his.

"You're..!" Marco asked and the man smiled.

"I am Stelly! This woman is my fiancé and I will collect her immediately and be off." The man said but Marco pushed him out of the way and hid Luffy behind himself.

"Oi, Luffy isn't your fiancé, she doesn't have a ring and you haven't proposed to her at all either." Marco said and Luffy nodded knowing that what the man said is true.

"It is an arranged marriage so such things are not needed, now hand her over." Stelly said but Marco frowned and did not move.

"Luffy isn't something that you can simply own." Marco said and Luffy looked up at him.

"I don't care." Stelly said. "She is the heir to a great fortune that is quite popular. On top of that she is cute as well."

"You aren't going to touch Luffy." Marco said and Luffy stood next to him and looked at the man.

"I'm not going with you." She said and Stelly stared at her in shock at her defiance of him. "Tell gee-chan that I'm not listening to him ever again."

"You! How dare you try and defy me even though I am the man that has everything! Women would kill to get the position that you are getting yet here you are defying me!" the man asked and Luffy nodded.

"I don't care about that sort of stuff, go away." Luffy said.

"How da-"

"STELLY GODDAMMIT CAN'T YOU LISTEN TO ME FOR ONCE!"

The three looked at the man who came running into the room and glared at Stelly who was upset at the man being there. The man who was wearing a top hat walked up to the other, passing Marco and showing that they were about the same height, and grabbed the man's wrist.

"I told you not to come here Stelly." The man said but the other simply swiped his hand away and glared at the taller.

"I don't have to listen to you but I don't feel well right now so for now I shall leave." the shorter of the two said before walking to the door. "I will be back to get my fiancé however."

"I'm sorry about my brother." The one with the top hat said and the two turned to him. "My name is Sabo, I'm Stelly's older brother and sadly the one who has to deal with him."

"Okay, but that is fine." Marco told the blonde who smiled at him before glancing at Luffy.

"It seems that you two are together." The man said and Luffy nodded making Sabo smile. "I'll try to talk my brother out of marrying Luffy."

"Why?" Marco asked and Sabo smiled.

"Because I happen to know Ace." The man said and Luffy stared at him with wide eyes.

* * *

SABO~! I finally got to the part where he was in and did I leave with a cliffhanger again? I hope you liked^^


	20. Bump in the Night

**_Hello you lovely people who I hope are not angry at me and think I have died. Yeah this is Puppy here apologizing for the fact that I haven't updated in a long time. School has kept me busy and I can no longer make any promises on things like updates though I am usually always thinking about the stories, I just don't have the time to type them up. However I am alive and would really appreciate it if you guys understood that I can't help but not update that often. Do not give up on me however for I still write.

* * *

_**

Chapter 20: Bump in the Night

_Ace ran down the edge of the forest, trying to stay hidden from cars that were on the road. Luffy was on his back, tired and injured from falling down a hill and hitting a tree. The teen looked around, trying to find a place to hide but their grandfather was persistent in his pursuit of them. Ace lost his footing and slid into the woods, accidentally dropping Luffy who didn't wake up._

"_Damn, sorry Lu." Ace said to the sleeping girl before picking her up and running again._

_After a few miles, Ace came across search light beams and quickly ducked into the forest. He ignored the cuts on his legs that he had received and decided that carrying Luffy bridal style would be best. The lights drew closer and Ace pressed himself against the tree in an attempt to hide better._

"_Oi, I know you're behind the tree so come out." a voice said and Ace carefully glanced around to stare at a man his age. "You got the girl with you?"_

_Ace came out of his hiding spot and stared at the man in the top hat suspiciously. The man shined the light on Ace's dirty face before shining it on Luffy. The man nodded before turning around and urging Ace to follow him_

"_Follow me. I'll bring you someplace safe." The man said and Ace narrowed his eyes._

"_Who the hell are you and why should I trust you?" Ace asked and the man smiled._

"_Because I know your situation and decided to help." He said. "My name is Sabo.

* * *

_

Marco and Luffy stared at the man in front of them, both in shock. Sabo smiled at Luffy, happy to see her safe and sound and happy. He turned to Marco who had regained is composition and looked at Luffy.

"So you saved Ace and Luffy that day." He said and Sabo nodded.

"Luffy was asleep so I never got to meet her really." Sabo said before turning to Luffy.

The girl had stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. Marco and Sabo were surprised but they smiled when Luffy looked up at Sabo. The girl stepped back and placed Ace's hat on her head before carefully smiling at Sabo.

"Thank you." She said quietly.

"No problem." Sabo said putting his hand on the small girl's head. "I'll get my brother to stop this marriage. Leave it to big brother."

The man left after saying good bye and Marco looked at Luffy who was staring at the door. He smiled before wrapping his arms around the girl's shoulders and hugging her. Luffy hugged him back but her eyes never trailed from the door. Marco looked down at the girl before what they had been doing before came to his mind.

"So, shall we continue?" he asked leaning down and kissing the girl gently.

* * *

"So the guy you're apparently engaged to came over yesterday?' Zoro asked at lunch and Luffy nodded before biting into her bento.

"Sabo-nii got rid of him." the girl said before looking out the window.

"Sabo?" Nami questioned and Vivi answered.

"Stelly-san's older brother." She said and they turned to her. "Do you know him Luffy-san?"

"Ace-nii did." the girl said and silence came across the group. "He said that he was going to help stop the marriage."

"So he's on our side?" Nami asked and Luffy nodded. "Since that's cleared up, have you and Marco Frenched yet?"

"Frenched?" Keimi asked.

"It's where you stick your tongue in each other's mouths." Zoro said.

A poof sound came and they all turned to Luffy who was bright red. "Oh my god you two did!" Nami said looking at Luffy's embarrassed face.

The girl looked away from them as if she was pouting and continued to eat. They all laughed except Zoro who sighed at his new friends' ideas of fun.

"Oi, shitty Marimo. What the hell are you doing sitting with these beautiful ladies like this?"

The group turned to Sanji who was angrily glaring at Zoro. The blonde's eye turned to a heart when he noticed the girls' stares. "Excuse me lovely ladies for my foul language and my brother's annoyance." He said though Zoro ignored him.

"You're the annoying one." Nami muttered and Keimi giggled a bit before they turned to Sanji and Zoro who were once again fighting.

"Zoro-san, Sanji-san, please don't fight." Vivi asked and Sanji instantly had her hand in his and was about to kiss it.

"Of course mademoiselle." He said right before Nami hit him with a metal blue stick.

"Hands off pervert." The orange haired girl said and Luffy simply ignored him and continued to eat.

"Luffy-chan, if you like I can make you lunch tomorrow." Sanji said forgiving Nami and hoping to win over Luffy. "I can cook much better than whoever made that."

A familiar sensation filled the blonde as he stared at the eyes of the girl who was glaring at him once again. Zoro also caught this look but this time it wasn't just directed at Sanji. the girl was over all annoyed at this whole thing and when Sanji didn't react she stood up.

Nobody moved, all having been in the classroom, as Luffy packed up and left without a word. Nami looked at the door that had been slammed shut and sighed before turning to Sanji and hitting him on the head. The blonde looked at the girl and froze as he saw her annoyed face.

"This is all your fault you dumbass." She said sharply. "Marco is a great guy and because of him, Luffy isn't in some mental hospital. She's gone through a lot of shit and is usually the total opposite of this. A lot of things have been happening right now and the last thing she needs is someone talking shit about her boyfriend."

"Nami-chin is pissed." Keimi said and Zoro and Vivi agreed as Nami kept her steady glare on Sanji.

"Mental hospital?" Sanji asked and Nami nodded.

"Luffy-san's brother died in a car accident a few months ago." Vivi said and Sanji turned to her. "She didn't come for school for several days and when she did, she was the exact opposite how she used to be. It was as if she didn't trust anyone."

"We talked to Marco-chin and apparently the ordeal of losing her last family put her in shock." Keimi said.

"Luffy is dealing with the pain of getting over this but things keep getting in her way." Nami said and Sanji looked at the ground.

"And this Marco guy?" he asked.

"The one thing keeping Luffy from jumping off a cliff." Nami stated bluntly and Sanji looked heartbroken.

"I deserve to get hit in the gut." He said.

"Ten fold." Zoro stated having already known all this information.

* * *

Marco opened the door to his house like he usually did and entered, expecting to be hearing music and maybe talking. When he entered and heard nothing, something concerned him. He went through his usual routine, well at least planned to but stopped when he saw that the house was a mess.

Curtains had been ripped, books pushed off shelves, knives and other kitchen utensils had been thrown on the floor. A few plates and glasses were broke and the table was in half. A few of the couch pillows had been thrown so hard against the wall they exploded, feathers were everywhere.

At first Marco thought a robber had come in and was worried about Luffy but as he followed the trail of disaster, he saw it led to Luffy's room. The blonde opened the door and stared at the room that was worst then the rest of the house. Almost everything in the room was destroyed. Everything but items and clothing that had belonged to Ace.

He noticed Luffy, sitting on the bed with Ace's blanket covering her. He sighed and walked over to her, sitting down on the bed and carefully removing the blanket. Luffy was curled up in a ball, her face down in her arms. The black haired girl looked up at him and Marco smiled at her before placing his hand on her head.

"Bad day at school?" he asked and Luffy nodded before Marco hugged her. "Okay, it's okay."

"Stupid person." Luffy mumbled as she hugged the man back, burying herself in his chest.

Marco sighed with a small smile before running his hand down Luffy's back. "There are a lot of people like that." He said before looking around the room. "But next time you're pissed, come to the warehouse and beat up Thatch, not the house."


	21. Deleting this Account

Hey everyone, this is 7Saix-Puppy7, I am sorry that for the past year I have been inactive, things happened and my fanfictions became my last priority as well as things that I wasn't too proud of. I realized how bad my writings were and decided that I would stop. Later on I got back into writing however I made a new account and created a new OC. I completely forgot about this one.

I came here to tell you that I plan to delete this account. However, some of the stories will be rewritten and posted onto my new account. This story, Phoenix's Light will be rewritten though. I rather liked this one and it did somewhat have a plot to it.

Other stories will be rewritten and posted on my new account. My new account is xXBorn-A-PirateXx which is also my DeviantArt username if we wish to see that. Thank you for understanding.


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